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Rare diseases

Rare diseases have a devastating impact on people’s lives: pharmaceutical companies here in the UK and around the world are working to change that – developing new medicines to give families hope for the future.

Rare diseases have a devastating impact on people’s lives: pharmaceutical companies here in the UK and around the world are working to change that – developing new medicines to give families hope for the future.

The UK government and devolved administrations published the in January 2021, setting out a shared vision for addressing health inequalities and improving the lives of people living with rare diseases across the UK.

The framework outlined 4 key national priorities:

  • helping patients get a final diagnosis faster
  • increasing awareness among healthcare professionals
  • better co-ordination of care
  • improving access to specialist care, treatment and drugs

To turn this vision into action, each of the 4 UK nations developed nation-specific action plans detailing how these priorities will be addressed.

Read the action plans: /Ìý / /Ìý.Ìý

We’re facing three challenges:

  1. The awareness challenge
  2. The diagnosis challenge
  3. The evaluation and access to medicines challenge

Last modified: 22 March 2022

Last reviewed: 1 August 2022