15 Non-profits in 7 Countries Win Vertex Grants for Cystic Fibrosis Projects

Fifteen non-profit groups in seven countries will receive Cystic Fibrosis Circle of Care project grants totaling nearly $1 million this year, the program’s sponsor, Vertex Pharmaceuticals, announced.

The grants, now in their third year, go to medical, academic, patient, and community organizations serving the cystic fibrosis (CF) community.

Since the program started in 2015, the company has made 50 awards totaling $3 million to organizations worldwide.

“Circle of Care grant recipients are committed to making life better for people with CF and their families,” Dr. Jeffrey Leiden, the chairman of Vertex, said in a press release. “We are proud to support these organizations and inspired by the impact and international reach their projects have.”

This year’s recipients include non-profits from the United States, Canada, Australia, the Czech Republic, Spain, Italy, and the United Kingdom.

The company invites recipients to a colloquium each year to discuss their projects. This year’s colloquium will be part of the 31^st North American Cystic Fibrosis Conference in Indianapolis, Nov. 2-4.

The Circle of Care program supports research initiatives focused on:

• Promoting better and healthier lives for CF patients.
• Addressing patients’ psycho-social challenges.
• Improving family and caregiver support.
• Providing tools to help patients take ownership of their healthcare needs.
• Educating patients about ways to achieve their goals, ranging from lifestyle transition to navigating new environments.

“Receiving a CF Circle of Care grant is not only a valuable source of funding, but it also helps connect non-profits like ours with other groups who are striving to make a similar impact in the CF community,” said Brian Callanan, executive director of the Cystic Fibrosis Lifestyle Foundation, one of this year’s grant recipients.

“This grant enables us to create a new collaborative program to help people with CF live healthier lives in partnership with three other organizations looking to model our program in their local regions,” he said. “We are so grateful to be able to help them launch such important work with these funds.”

A complete list of Circle of Care grant recipients and their project descriptions is available here.