Forma Launches Formabridge and $1M Grants Program to Support Transition from Pediatric to Adult Care in Sickle Cell Disease

Forma Therapeutics launched Formabridge, an online resource that will provide $1 million in funding for promising and innovative initiatives that address unmet needs in the transition from pediatric to adult care in sickle cell disease.

Photo: Frank Lee, president and CEO of Forma

Funding will be provided to researchers, healthcare institutions, and patient and community organizations based on specific criteria. Proposals will be reviewed by a panel of Forma personnel and external advisors with expertise in the challenges impacting transition in SCD. Grants will be awarded to proposals that have the greatest potential to improve patient care in the first half of 2022.

“We’ve been moved by our discussions with the SCD community, particularly as we learn more about how patients experience the disease as they age out of the pediatric system,” said Frank Lee, president and CEO of Forma. “Though great strides have been made to reduce pediatric mortality and morbidity in SCD, the period of transition leads to significant care gaps, and sadly is often marked by increased hospitalizations and mortality. Successful transition will require a collective and concerted effort to change the future of SCD. Our hope is that Formabridge will play an impactful role in securing a safer and healthier future for people living with this disease.”

Forma’s inaugural SCD Trend Report: The State of Transition provides insights from a survey of patients, caregivers, and physicians. The report highlights obstacles patients face during transition and identifies areas where patients and physicians have differing views.

The report will be published annually and is intended to facilitate discussion on opportunities to better support people living with SCD, along with opportunities to support key systemic and policy changes. Key findings in the report include:

• 62% of patients found their overall transition experience “moderately or very challenging”

• 78% of patients report discrimination and stigma prevent them from receiving the SCD care they need

• 73% of physicians agree there is a lack of transition guidelines and protocols in their practice or institution

“Increasing the understanding of challenges faced by both patients and health care providers during transition from pediatric to adult care is fundamental to fixing the problem,” said Nirmish Shah, a hematologist and the director of the Sickle Cell Transition Program at Duke University. “While there are no immediate or easy answers, my hope is that funding and other resources from Formabridge can help to move the needle for people living with SCD.”

Author: Rare Daily Staff