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Description: |
Rare or 'orphan' diseases include nearly 7000 disorders and affect 2-3 million Canadians. For children with rare diseases, standard medical approaches often do not meet their needs, necessitating further research. However, research precedent often does not exist for rare diseases and never exists for uncharacterized diseases. Thus, the traditional research funding paradigm, which requires precedent and evidence of prior funding in an area of expertise, is unsuitable to fund research into rare or uncharacterized diseases. The Rare Disease Foundation has recognized this problem and identified a new model for improving care of patients with rare disorders. For patients with rare conditions, research IS care. To this end, the Rare Disease Foundation, in collaboration with BCCHF, provides microgrants to expedite exploration of new ideas for understanding rare diseases and improving patient care. Applications may be submitted by anyone (faculty, staff, or student) as long as they have a supervisor associated with a Canadian institution or a Registered Institution. |
