ONCE UPON A GENE - EPISODE 229\nUniting Strengths - Rare Disease Collaboration on a Shared Patient Registry Through Sanford Cords with Cure Mito and Hope for PDCD Leaders Frances Muenzer Pimentel and Sophia Zilber\n\nFrances Muenzer Pimentel and Sophia Zilber have united the Hope for PDCD Foundation and the Cure Mito Foundation to launch a global joint registry and they're here to share about the collaboration.\n\nEPISODE HIGHLIGHTS\n\nWhat is a registry and why does a patient group need to have one?\nA registry is a way to organize data as it relates to a particular disease. It's useful to bring the community together to learn where patients are in the world, aligning patients with clinical trials, and monitoring how a disease progresses over time. Sharing and publishing results collected in the registry also helps to bring awareness about the disease.\xa0\n\nWhat inspired the launch of a joint registry?\nOur populations have an overlap in patients and we wanted to make it as easy as possible for patients and caregivers to participate in the registry. In addition to centralizing the registry overlap, we've made the process optimized for mobile, all in one place and as seamless as possible.\xa0\n\nWhat is the importance of participating in a registry and a natural history study?\nParticipating in a registry and natural history study are among the most important things you can do to contribute to the research of your disease. It doesn't cost anything but your time and there's no better way to get an accurate count of the patient population than through patient registries. This tool helps with having conversations with biotech companies and to prove that you're a commercially viable disease.\xa0\n\nWhat is next for the registry and what are your goals?\nWe still have a lot of work left to evangelize the registry and educate our community on the difference between a registry and natural history study, explaining how crucial they both are. The work we're doing with the registry combined with newborn screening advocacy and we won't be able to be ignored anymore.\xa0\n\nHow can rare disease families start a registry?\nThere's a working group called Best Data Practices for Rare Disease Patient Foundations and Researchers on PHUSE with resources available on how to start a registry. The materials are easy to read and follow and they're available to everyone.\xa0\n\nLINKS AND RESOURCES MENTIONED\nGlobal Genes Conference - Week in RARE\nhttps://globalgenes.org/week-in-rare/\nONCE UPON A GENE - EPISODE 228 - Strength In Unity - The Power of Consolidated Rare Disease Advocacy, Collaborative Breathroughs, and the Every Cure Initiative with Dr. David Fajgenbaum\nhttps://effieparks.com/podcast/episode-228-strength-in-unity\nONCE UPON A GENE - EPISODE 194 - A Guide for Rare Disease Patient Advocacy Groups - Choosing and Designing a Patient Registry with Sophia Zilber\nhttps://effieparks.com/podcast/episode-194-a-guide-for-rare-disease-patient-advocacy-groups\nPatient registries: a practical guide for patient organizations\nhttps://sophiazilber.gumroad.com/l/registries\nHope for PDCD Foundation\nhttps://www.hopeforpdcd.org/\nCure Mito Foundation\nhttps://www.curemito.org/\nCoRDS\nhttps://cords.sanfordresearch.org/account/login\nBest Data Practices for Rare Disease Patient Foundations and Researchers\nhttps://advance.phuse.global/display/WEL/Best+Data+Practices+for+Rare+Disease+Patient+Foundations+and+Researchers\n\n\nCONNECT WITH EFFIE PARKS\nWebsite\nhttps://effieparks.com/\nTwitter\nhttps://twitter.com/OnceUponAGene\nInstagram\nhttps://www.instagram.com/onceuponagene.podcast/?hl=en\nBuilt Ford Tough Facebook Group\nhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/1877643259173346/