Michelle Muscat, the prime minister's wife, has been chosen Honorary European Patron by the European Organisation for Rare Diseases (EURORDIS).

In a testimony about the EURORDIS, Mrs Muscat said: “For someone suffering from a rare disease, that disease is not rare at all. It remains a disease that affects a life and a family and perplexes the immediate community around it. For the patient it is real life and he has to cope with it. It is for this reason that I want to support such a cause. Because what is rare for someone, is a daily burden for someone else.”

Mrs Muscat is expected to participate in a fund raising event in Brussels to support community building initiatives to break the isolation of rare disease patients and their families in Europe. She will also be taking part in one-to-one meetings with EURORDIS members to lobby the need for further research, training, capacity-building activities and exchange whilst increasing public awareness about rare diseases.

EURORDIS is a leading International Non-Government Organisation and is recognised as the largest European Patient Organisation in the field of rare diseases. EURORDIS represents more than 590 rare disease organisations in 54 different countries, covering more than 4,000 distinct rare diseases. EURORDIS is the voice of an estimated 30 million patients affected by rare diseases throughout Europe.