IPOPI Research Grant Programme Winners

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The IPOPI Research Grant Programme is a new initiative aimed at promoting scientific and clinical research in the field of primary immunodeficiencies.  

This first grant call in 2024 supported by Grifols ran between April and August, inviting applicants from all over to world to seize the opportunity to fuel innovation in the field with patient-centred and knowledge generating projects.  

 

IPOPI is pleased to announce the winners of the IPOPI Research Grant Programme 2024, who will benefit of funding for 2 years to carry the following projects: 

 

  • Dr Geeta Govindaraj 

    • Affiliation: School of Family Health Studies, Kerala University of Health Sciences and FPID Regional Diagnostic Centre, Government Medical College, Kozhikode, India.
      • Project Title: Integrating Tiered Screening for Severe Inborn Errors of Immunity with Routine Newborn Screening: A patient-centered, precision
        health approach.
      • This project aims to implement screening of primary immunodeficiencies in the currently available newborn screening tests for high risk families in North Kerala, assuring counselling and follow-up along with the collection of data to implement this tiered approach in India.

  • Ms Cynthia Olotch 

    • Affiliation: Primary Immunodeficiencies Association, Kenya.
      • Project Title: Opportunities for Enhancing Healthcare in Africa through Public Private Partnerships with a Focus on Plasma Fractionation.
      • This research aims to explore the potential of Public-Private Partnerships to address plasma-derived medicinal products challenges in Africa, with a specific focus on strengthening the role of regional initiatives, harmonizing regulatory practices, and improving access to quality medicine.

  • Dr Intan Juliana Abd Hamid 

    • Affiliation: Primary Immunodeficiency Diseases Group, Department of Clinical Medicine, Institut Perubatan & Pergigian Termaju, Universiti Sains, Malaysia.
      • Project Title: Longitudinal Analysis of Mental Health Trajectories in Children and Adolescents with Primary Immunodeficiency Diseases.
      • This project will focus on the examination of the psychosocial predictors of children’s mental health outcomes when living with PID from the perspectives of their caregivers in Malaysia, with a particular emphasis on the association between caregiver factors and child recovery.

  • Dr Anastasiia Bondarenko & Dr Yuriy Stepanovskyy 

    • Affiliation: Ukrainian Association of Pediatric Immunology, Ukraine.
      • Project Title: Selective screening of hospitalized patients with serious bronchopulmonary infections for PID by measuring serum antibodies IgG,
        IgM, and IgA.
      • This project will select hospitals in Ukrainian regions with the lowest rates of PID diagnosis and conduct a selective screening to advocate for the improvement of diagnostics in the country.

We wish the best of luck and success to these projects and wish to thank everyone who applied. 

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Global Patients’ Meeting 2024: A Milestone for our Community

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From 16-19 October, IPOPI’s XVIII Global Patients’ Meeting (GPM) brought together 100 participants from nearly 50 countries, in Marseille, marking a record number of National Member Organisations (NMOs). Held alongside the European Society for Immunodeficiencies (ESID) and the International Nursing Group for Immunodeficiencies’ (INGID) congresses, this flagship biennial event highlighted collaboration across the primary immunodeficiency (PID) community.

Programme

This meeting featured insightful sessions on mental health, innovative therapies, artificial intelligence and much more. IPOPI introduced two key tools: the “Level Up” Board Game, and a new Toolkit with 25+ practical resources. The programme was well-balanced, combining educational sessions with skill-building workshops to empower attendees with practical tools and strategies to strengthen their organisations. Watch the meeting recap here.

We thank Chiesi, CSL Behring, Takeda, X4, and Biotest support for making this programme possible.

PID Champion Awards

On October 17, the IPOPI community also came together to honour outstanding contributions to the primary immunodeficiency (PID) field through the PID Champion Awards. Watch the highlights from the event here.

  • The LeBien Award, honouring outstanding contributions to improving conditions for PID patients worldwide, was awarded to Prof Aziz Bousfiha (Morocco). A long-time IPOPI supporter, he has been instrumental in advancing PID diagnosis and treatment in Africa and beyond.
  • The Luciano Vassalli Award, which honours young individuals under 30 who have made a difference in the world of PIDs at the national level, was awarded to David Jimenez Gonzalez from Spain (AEDIP), for his advocacy work and patient support in Spain.
  • The B.I.G. Award, celebrating Bold, Innovative and Game-changing projects, saw inspiring NMOs recognised for their impactful work. This year´s winners were:
    • 1st place: PIDPSB, Bangladesh.
    • 2nd place: PID Tsubasa-no-Kai, Japan.
    • 3rd place: AAPPI, Algeria.

Watch the awards video here.

We thank Kedrion for making this event possible with their unconditional grant.

Annual General Meeting – New Executive Committee

During the Annual General Meeting on October 18, IPOPI announced its newly elected Executive Committee for 2024-2028: Cynthia Olotch (Kenya), Roberta Anido (Argentina), Tracy Shaw (USA), and Dimas Adhi Sugiharto (Indonesia). Bruce Lim (Malaysia) was co-opted for the 2024-2026 term.

The GPM 2024 was a remarkable gathering of the global PID community, marked by collaboration, innovation and advancement. We look forward to building on its success in the years to come.

More event photos: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3.

 

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