Dear Friends at the Spastic Paraplegia Foundation,
As the retired founder and Past-President of NORD, I want to let you know that my new book, "Orphan Drugs: A Global Crusade", has been published. The electronic version of the book can be downloaded at no cost from my web site, www.abbeysmeyers.com , and the printed soft-cover book is available on Amazon.
The reason I wrote this book was to show that individuals alone did not have the political power to solve this economic, medical and political problem, but by working together rare disease patients represent millions of people who can be a formidable political force. The accomplishments of the patient-led rare disease charities in the USA have served as a model for the rest of the industrialized world. Noting the success of the American Orphan Drug Act, many industrialized countries have implemented their own orphan drug legislation, and together orphan disease advocacy organizations have become a “Global Crusade” for people with rare "orphan diseases".
This clearly illustrates the importance of the patient community working together for the benefit of all. I wish all of you at The Spastic Paraplegia Foundation all the best.
Sincerely,
Abbey S. Meyers
