Written by Valaree DonFrancesco on February 29, 2020

I suffer from neuromyelitis optica, or NMO disease (sister of MS, also known as Devic syndrome) and chronic pain. I experienced my first attack in the summer and now am in the thick of my second one (a relapse), and… Read More
Written by Valaree DonFrancesco on February 29, 2020
I was diagnosed with afibrinogenemia when I was just one day old. The day I was born my heel sticks would not stop bleeding, which immediately had the delivering doctor puzzled. I was then rushed to a different hospital, four… Read More
Written by Valaree DonFrancesco on February 29, 2020

I was diagnosed with primary immunodeficiency when I was four years old. With primary immunodeficiency, the assumption is that “it’s just an infection” or that it’s normal because “kids get sick.” The problem was that I was never getting better and… Read More
Written by Valaree DonFrancesco on February 27, 2020
Dance, lip-sync and comedy video creator Mark Anastasio spoke in a somewhat different tone in a recent Tik Tok video for his 6.3 million followers. The content of the video? Raising awareness for the rare disease community in memory of his teacher’s son,… Read More
Written by Lisa Sencen on March 6, 2019

This year, NORD launched the #ShowYourStripes awareness campaign in time for Rare Disease Day (RDD) with a goal of increasing attention on rare diseases and engaging our community. Judging by the number of events, attendance at events, extensive media coverage, robust social media engagement and beyond, NORD is very proud… Read More