Description
Sarcoidosis is an enigmatic disease characterized pathologically by granulomatous inflammation in the lung, heart, brain, eyes, skin, liver and other organs. It remains unclear why patients’ disease manifestations, severity and long-term prognoses vary so widely among the individuals affected. It also remains unclear why sarcoidosis’ prevalence and mortality are significantly higher among African-Americans and women. As such, sarcoidosis has become a disease of health disparities. The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) held a two-day workshop with the stakeholders of this disease to discuss how to leverage recent scientific advances to better understand sarcoidosis pathogenesis and to identify and help patients at-risk for severe sarcoidosis. The participants of the workshop included many experts outside of cardiology and pulmonary medicine since a more coordinated and collaborative approach by all stakeholders is needed to accelerate research in this disease and improve sarcoidosis patients’ outcomes.