Rare Disease Day is the official international awareness-raising campaign for rare diseases. Rare Disease Day takes place on the last day of February each year. The main objective of the campaign is to raise awareness amongst the general public and decision-makers about rare diseases and their impact on patients’ lives.
Some key statistics on rare diseases:
- Over 300 million people around the world are living with a rare disease.
- There are over 6,000 identified rare diseases.
- 72% of rare diseases are genetic.
- 70% of genetic rare diseases start in childhood.