Launch Consortium Lung Regeneration

We are excited to announce the launch of the international Consortium Lung Regeneration. 

Under the direction of prof.dr. Hans Clevers of the Hubrecht Institute and prof.dr. Carla Kim of the Harvard Medical School / Boston Children's Hospital, renowned scientists from the United States and Europe will work together intensively to accelerate a medical breakthrough for COPD.
The Consortium has set itself the target for 2023 to have a 'lung organoid' (mini-organ bred from lung cells) so that new medicines and treatments for COPD can be tested. Additionally, the consortium has the ambition to within five years start clinical studies with lung stem cells that can repair damaged lung tissue. In a short video Hans Clevers explains the approach of the consortium.

Lung regeneration and COPD

Innovative developments bring the curing of COPD closer by. COPD is a progressive illness that cannot be cured. In 2030,COPD will be the third leading cause of death worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. Already 251 million people worldwide are suffering from COPD. It is a disease with a huge, yet not always visible, impact on people and society. If we can regenerate lung tissue, we will achieve a major medical breakthrough!

LONGFONDS | Accelerate

The Consortium Lung Regeneration is part of the international research program LONGFONDS | Accelerate. On the initiative and under the direction of the Lung Foundation Netherlands (Longfonds) renowned scientists, academic pioneers, doctors, lung patients and social partners work closely together. In January 2018 the first Accelerate research program was launched, focussing on a treatment which prevents childhood asthma.