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Lymphedema & Lymphatic Disease Matters, September 2021

September 2021

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September 2021

From William Repicci, President & CEO

This month, LE&RN received incredible news that would have been unthinkable until recently.

Two years ago, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) worked with LE&RN to create its first website and video focused on lymphedema (LE). More was needed. LE&RN joined with dozens of other chronic disease organizations to lobby Congress to fund Chronic Disease Awareness grants. LE&RN not only succeeded in having Congress create the program, but it was also awarded a three-year grant to create a National Lymphedema Awareness Campaign. The LE/LD community has reason to cheer. This reflects the current heightened visibility of lymphatic diseases, which is a direct response to your support and advocacy.

During this month, LE&RN also announced five newly designated Comprehensive Centers of Excellence. We are proud of the growth of this program, and we congratulate these institutions that are constantly striving to better serve our community.

If you haven't already, please register for the 2021 Lymphatic Summit. Early-bird tickets for general registration are available through September 30. CME credit is available for the medical community. The Boston Lymphatic Symposium begins at the end of October. Both events are virtual and both will feature a showing of the play, "Let's Talk Lymphedema," as a bonus for registrants.

As President & CEO of LE&RN, I thank you for your ongoing support. None of these accomplishments would be possible without the backing and efforts of this unstoppable community.

I am pleased to present you with the September edition of Lymphedema & Lymphatic Disease Matters, which will provide you with details on this very busy month.

LE&RN awarded CDC National Lymphedema Awareness Grant

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has awarded LE&RN one of the first-ever Expanding the National Approach to Chronic Disease Education and Awareness competitive grants. This three-year grant commences September 30 and empowers LE&RN to create a National Lymphedema Awareness Campaign.

LE&RN President & CEO William Repicci will serve as the campaign's Project Director while Dr. Stanley Rockson, of Stanford University School of Medicine and Founding Chair of LE&RN’s Scientific and Medical Advisory Council, will serve as Primary Investigator. The campaign will draw on the awareness-building expertise of Citizen Group, a San Francisco-based award-winning creative, marketing, and social impact agency, and will include LE&RN Spokesperson Kathy Bates.

A special thanks to House Appropriations Committee Chairperson Rep. Rosa DeLauro (CT) and Committee member Rep. Tom Cole (OK), both of whom championed this initiative. Further thanks to those organizations who will partner with LE&RN in disseminating materials over the course of the grant: the American Venous Society (AVS), the American Venous & Lymphatic Society (AVLS), and the American Society of Breast Surgeons (ASBrS).

Read and share LE&RN's press release on the CDC grant

Newly designated LE&RN Comprehensive Centers of Excellence (COEs) announced

In September, LE&RN announced newly designated Comprehensive Centers of Excellence in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Lymphatic Diseases. These institutions join Comprehensive Centers around the globe. In the coming weeks, institutions that will receive the designations Surgery Center, Network Center, Referral Network Center, and Conservative Care Center will be announced. The Centers of Excellence website contains links to these institutions as well as more information about the program and standards.

The newly designated LE&RN Comprehensive Centers of Excellence (all services provided within the same institution):

Cleveland Clinic
Nemours Children's Hospital Delaware (Comprehensive Pediatric Center of Excellence)
Penn Center for Lymphatic Diseases and Lymphedema
University of Michigan
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston (Comprehensive Cancer Center of Excellence)

Read and share LE&RN's press release on newly designated COEs

Register Now: Lymphatic Summit 2021, 11/12-11/13

In November, LE&RN will present its second virtual Lymphatic Summit 2021: The Continuum from Evolving Research to State-of-the-Art Lymphatic Management; a forum for LE&RN’s Centers of Excellence and the Lymphatic Disease (LD) community.

The Academy for Continued Healthcare Learning designates this live activity for a maximum of 9.00 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™.

The event is organized and hosted by Dr. Stanley Rockson, Allan and Tina Neill Professor of Lymphatic Research and Medicine at Stanford University School of Medicine and founding Chair of the LE&RN Scientific & Medical Advisory Council. Attendees will have the opportunity to find out more about LE&RN's Centers of Excellence and to view "Let's Talk Lymphedema," the first play ever written and produced about LE. The showing is sponsored by a grant from Fondation Ipson.

Boston Lymphatic Symposium

The Boston Lymphatic Symposium (Patient Symposium: October 30; Clinical Symposium: November 5-6) is honored to offer this year’s registrants a unique bonus to the scheduled program: a virtual presentation of the play, Let’s Talk Lymphedema. This year's Boston Lymphatic Symposium will also offer a free NIH/NHLBI Pre-Conference Symposium. While primarily geared toward clinicians, basic scientists, and other experts in the field of lymphatics, all are welcome.

Please visit bostonlymphaticsymposium.org for more information regarding the speakers and agendas, and to register. The Patient Symposium will be held October 30, 2021. The Clinical Symposium will be held November 5-6, 2021. An NIH Clinical Pre-Conference will be offered free of charge on November 4.