In May, the FSR team came together in San Francisco, California for the 2025 American Thoracic Society (ATS) International conference. ATS is one of our favorite events that takes place every year and brings together health care professionals, industry partners, nonprofit organizations, and researchers from all around the world who specialize in pulmonary and critical care medicine.
FSR had the pleasure of connecting with so many of its partners and community members. Let’s look at some of the highlights from this year’s conference:
FSR hosted a booth in the exhibit hall where we handed out resources for clinicians and researchers attending the conference. It was a key opportunity to share about sarcoidosis, highlight its programs, network with new potential partners, and spread awareness.
FSR met with over 40 different partners, an invaluable time to connect, discuss collaboration opportunities, and share thoughts on the next groundbreaking developments in sarcoidosis. This included meetings with Scientific Advisory Board (SAB), Global Sarcoidosis Clinic Alliance (GSCA) members, Clinical Studies Network (CSN) researchers, FSR grantees, industry partners, and more.
FSR held the first in-person Investigator Meeting in several years for the PAPLAND Routine Cardiac Screening in Sarcoidosis study, bringing together its lead researchers from around the world.
FSR President & CEO, Mary McGowan, presented on FSR’s Ignore No More campaign, an ongoing, focused, collaborative effort to break down barriers for clinical trials. Erica Courtenay-Mann, an advocate with sarcoidosis and member of the FSR Women of Color Patient Advisory Committee, shared about her journey on four different occasions during the conference.
FSR and our collaborators also presented a total of four posters, sharing findings from the Externally Led Patient Focused Drug Development (EL-PFDD) meeting on sarcoidosis; a survey to understand the impact of FSR’s Peer-Led Support Groups; and two posters highlighting findings from the PAPLAND Routine Cardiac Screening in Sarcoidosis study.
Most excitingly, FSR announced the Champions for Change – PTO Initiative , a product of the Coalition to Transform Clinical Trial Engagement (CTCTE), which was shared by ATS to all 10,000 conference attendees. This work follows a recent exciting announcement when the Department of Labor provided clarity that employees who enroll in clinical trials and family caregivers supporting those enrolled in clinical trials can have that time protected under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). As a next step to addressing barriers to trial participation, FSR and the CTCTE are working with Human Resources departments to encourage companies across America to provide at least one paid day off for clinical trials as a benefit for their employees through this initiative.
The FSR team returns home invigorated from the conference to continue its efforts improving care and research and pushing closer to a cure for sarcoidosis.