Makarios Hospital to be lit up in blue in support of World Rare Disease Day

Makarios hospital will join the presidential palace on Monday night in being lit up blue to mark World Rare Disease Day, commemorated around the world on February 28.

Over 7,000 different diseases are currently classified as rare and only five per cent of them have effective treatment. About 70 per cent of rare diseases are genetically based and inheritable, and seven out of 10 manifest during childhood.

Marking the day on Monday acting director of the Cyprus health services organisation (Okypy) Kypros Stavrides said that as the largest health service provider in Cyprus Okypy “could not be absent in the great effort towards prevention, early diagnosis and treatment of rare diseases.”

Makarios hospital is the referral centre in Cyprus for the investigation of a possible genetic or inherited disease.

Speaking on behalf of the hospital’s department of genetics Dr Sofia Ourani highlighted the work carried out towards diagnosis, medical care, follow-up and social support for patients suffering from rare diseases and their families.

Ourani said that rare diseases are estimated to affect 3.5 to 5.9 per cent of the European population, about 30 million patients. In Cyprus, it is estimated that there are about 55,000 patients with rare diseases, she said.

Senior laboratory officer of the Department of Cytogenetics Dr Stella Konstantinou said the department is “a pioneering modern laboratory in the diagnosis of chromosomal abnormalities.” She added that it is the only site in Cyprus offering karyotypic analysis of bone marrow samples.

“Apart from classic karyotype analysis, the FISH method is also offered at our laboratory. FISH is used to search for certain genes or changes in chromosomes with enormous diagnostic value,” she explained.

Makarios hospital will be lit up in blue from 6pm on Monday night and the presidential palace from 6.30pm.