IPOPI hosts Round Table on respiratory care for patients with PIDs

October 20, 2025

IPOPI hosts Round Table on respiratory care for patients with PIDs

IPOPI hosted a Round Table on “Viral threats and immune challenges: Shaping the future of respiratory care from the PID patients’ perspective” in Brussels on 25 September 2025. The event brought together a broad range of stakeholders to foster a rich exchange of perspectives, aiming to identify and address the unmet medical needs in respiratory care for people living with primary immunodeficiencies (PIDs).

Martine Pergent, IPOPI President, and Johan Prevot, IPOPI Executive Director, co-moderated the discussion alongside Prof. Siobhan Burns from University College London (UK) and Prof. Helen Leavis from UMC Utrecht (The Netherlands).

The high-level speakers at the event included:

Kristian Vigenin, Member of the European Parliament (S&D, Bulgaria)
Nick Bundle, European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC)
Frazer Goodwin, European Federation of Allergies and Airways Diseases (EFA)
Borislava Ananieva, European Patients Forum (EPF)
Dr Leif Hanitsch, Charité University Hospital (Germany)
Anne-Sophie Henry-Eude, French PID patient organisation (IRIS)
Dr Selket Delafontaine, UZ Leuven (Belgium)
Dr Maria Pia Cicalese, ICRCCS Ospedale San Raffaele (Italy)

Following the presentations, a lively discussion took place with the attendees, including Johan Bechtel, a representative of the Swedish PID patient organisation (PIO). The presentations and subsequent debate laid the groundwork for a recommendation paper that will offer guiding principles for improving access, early diagnosis, and respiratory care for PID patients worldwide.

IPOPI extends its thanks to Pfizer for their support of the event.

Stay tuned for the upcoming report on the Round Table!