Event
Oxford-Harrington Rare Disease Centre Symposium 2026
23rd - 24th September, 2026
- Additional Details:
Save the date for the Oxford-Harrington Rare Disease Centre Symposium coming in September 2026. Subscribe to the OHC newsletter to receive more details and a programme in the coming months.
Symposium Programme
Wednesday, 23rd of September, 2026
| Indicative Time | Event / Speaker |
| 13:30 – 14:00 | Registration and Coffee |
| 14:00 – 14:10 | Opening Remarks - Matthew Wood, Director, Oxford-Harrington Rare Disease Centre |
| SESSION 1 | Translational Breakthroughs in Rare Disease Therapy Development |
| 14:10 – 14:40 | Gene Editing for Rare Metabolic Diseases - Fyodor Urnov, UC Berkeley - Rebecca Ahrens-Nicklas, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia |
| 14:40 – 15:00 | Gene Therapy for Rare Neurological Diseases - Sarah Tabrizi, University College London |
| 15:00 – 15:30 | Oligonucleotide Therapies for Rare Cardiac Muscle Diseases - Metin Avkiran, British Heart Foundation - Hugh Watkins, University of Oxford - Martin Murphy, Cora Biosciences |
| 15:30 – 16:00 | Break |
| SESSION 2 | Science, Policy and Funding Innovations for Rare Disease Therapy Development |
| 16:00 – 16:50 | Policy Expert Panel Discussion - Baroness Blackwood, Health Data Research Service (Chair) - Harriet Holme, PCD Research; Weatherden - Kath Bainbridge, Department of Health and Social Care - Julian Beach, Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency - Melanie Ivarsson, Health Data Research Service - George Orphanides, LifeArc |
| 16:50 – 17:10 | Big Pharma and the Challenges of Rare Disease Drug Development - Tony Wood, GSK |
| 17:10 – 17:30 | Advancing Rare Disease Science and Medical Research Council Strategy - Patrick Chinnery, Medical Research Council |
| 17:30 – 17:45 | Closing Remarks - Lord Cameron, Chair, Oxford-Harrington Rare Disease Centre Advisory Council |
| 17:45 – 19:00 | Networking Reception |
| 19:00 – 21:00 | Symposium Dinner in Trinity College Hall |
Thursday, 24th of September, 2026
| Indicative Time | Event / Speaker |
| 08:30 – 09:00 | Registration and Coffee |
| SESSION 3 | Therapy Development for Rare Neurological Diseases |
| 09:00 – 09:10 | Mel Dixon, Cure DHDDS |
| 09:10 – 09:25 | Haiyan Zhou, University College London |
| 09:25 – 09:40 | Matthew Anderson, Harrington Discovery Institute, University Hospitals |
| 09:40 – 09:55 | Alyssa Hill and Dora Markati, University of Oxford |
| 09:55 – 10:25 | TBC |
| 10:25 – 10:55 | Break |
| SESSION 4 | Therapy Development for Rare and Childhood Cancers |
| 10:55 – 11:05 | Jonathan Bracey, MVA Society |
| 11:05 – 11:20 | Charles Gersbach, Duke University |
| 11:20 – 11:35 | Xianxin Hua, University of Pennsylvania |
| 11:35 – 11:50 | John Anderson, University College London |
| 11:50 – 12:05 | John Letterio, Case Comprehensive Cancer Center |
| 12:05 – 12:20 | Lone Friis, LifeArc |
| 12:20 – 13:20 | Lunch |
| SESSION 5 | Translating Academic Breakthroughs to the Clinic |
| 13:20 – 13:35 | Moin Saleem, University of Bristol |
| 13:35 – 13:50 | David Hipkiss, AlveoGene |
| 13:50 – 14:05 | Francesco Muntoni, University College London |
| 14:05 – 14:20 | Stuart Milstein, Orfonyx Bio |
| 14:20 – 15:00 | Biopharma Industry Perspectives on Translation, Policy and Patient Access to Rare Disease Medicines - Clive Cookson, The Financial Times (Chair) - Kylie Bromley, Biogen - Azad Bonni, Roche - Deborah Richards, Alexion AstraZeneca |
| 15:00 – 15:30 | Break |
| SESSION 6 | Global Delivery and Equitable Access to N-of-1 Therapies |
| 15:30 – 17:00 | - Marlen Lauffer, University of Oxford (Chair) - Dan O’Connor, Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry - Roxana Redis, Charles River Laboratories - Martin Pool, Leiden University Medical Center - Gregory Costain, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada - Stephanie Manton, WinQure |
| 17:00 – 17:15 | Closing Remarks |
| 17:15 – 18:15 | Networking Reception |
| * The indicated times are subject to change. |