Dear GlobalSkin Members,
As 2025 draws to a close and we finish our third year of GlobalSkin’s 5-year Strategic Plan, I want to take this opportunity to say how grateful I am to be part of this incredible organization. Having the chance to meet so many of you at the 2025 GlobalSkin Conference in Prague was truly one of the most memorable moments of the year. Coming together, realizing that we are all in the same struggle to elevate ourselves and the communities that we serve, surely will create a world where people with dermatological conditions are healthy and fulfilled.
The growth of our unique global alliance continues to astound me as we now have well over 300 patient association members, found in 86 countries representing more than 59 disease areas. GlobalSkin has had many achievements this year by building on past successes like supporting our third cohort of Patient Expert Scholarships (EUPATI), and funding 47 Impact Fund Projects. We also made innovative accomplishments with the launch of a Young Patient Leader Council, new Regional Networks in South-East Asia/Western Pacific, and in Latin America. We managed all this while continuing to support our members through events and activities including the African Regional Network that launched last year.
If that wasn’t enough, we celebrated our 10th Anniversary and raised global awareness for our disease communities through Rare Disease Day. We saw a historic milestone for our community with the adoption of the World Health Assembly Skin Diseases Resolution. The resolution marks an important step toward addressing the needs of over 2 billion people affected by skin conditions worldwide. The resolution is not just a policy achievement; it demonstrates our commitment to champion the common interests of people affected by dermatological conditions and to ensure that no one is left behind.
GlobalSkin brought together global dermatology stakeholders to Unite for transformative change for patients through the initiatives of the World Skin Health Coalition and strategic alliances in many therapeutic areas of dermatology. Our presence at important conferences like; the World Skin Summit and the first-ever World Forum on Skin Cancer Prevention and Management in Persons with Albinism in Cape Town, South Africa just this month shows the powerful voice of patients that GlobalSkin represents. Engaging patients, dermatologists, researchers, policy makers, industry, and other key stakeholders is also critical to the success of the new 5-year strategy for the Patient Reported Impact of Dermatological Diseases (PRIDD) measure. The plan will help us illustrate the true burden that skin diseases pose by measuring physical, psychological, life responsibilities and the social impacts on the lives of people living with skin conditions.
Thank you all again for your support and I wish you all happy holidays and look forward to continuing our efforts in 2026!
Gratefully,
Marc Yale
GlobalSkin Board President
