NIH Director Francis Collins to Address 3,000 Cystic Fibrosis Experts at International Conference in Minneapolis

October 8, 2009

Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D., the new NIH director who led an international effort to map the human genome and co-discovered the gene responsible for cystic fibrosis, will address more than 3,000 leading scientists and clinicians from around the world at the 23rd annual North American Cystic Fibrosis Conference (NACFC).

Held in Minneapolis from Oct. 15-17, 2009, the conference comes at a pivotal point in the history of cystic fibrosis, a fatal genetic disease.

For the first time, drugs that aim to treat the basic genetic defect in CF have reached Phase 3 clinical trials. These include VX-770, ataluren (formerly PTC124) and denufosol. Past NACFC conferences have fueled this progress, and helped life expectancy for people with CF to double over the past 25 years.