COPD Foundation to host biannual conference in the U.S. for the first time

Originally hosted in Europe on even calendar years, the COPD Conference series for researchers and healthcare professionals is coming to the U.S. for the first time. The COPD Foundation is hosting the COPD7USA Conference, named after the seventh COPD Conference held last summer in the U.K. COPD7USA will be held on December 3^rd and 4^th at the Crystal City Gateway Marriott, 1700 Jefferson Davis Highway, Crystal City, VA 22202.

"Our patient community needs new therapies, an improved relationship with their providers, and a better quality of life" says John W. Walsh, president and co-founder of the COPD Foundation. "This conference series has proven to be an invaluable resource for experts across the world to help the patient community with their needs, and for this reason, we are proud to be hosting it in the States for the first time."

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is one of the world's largest healthcare concerns and its threat continues to worsen each year. An estimated 24 million Americans live with COPD, and 210 million worldwide.

World-leading researchers in the field will be present to give talks on the building blocks of COPD research, challenges in treatment, best practices for proper diagnosis and management of the disease, characterizing phenotypes, and addressing comorbidities.

According to a 2006 survey sponsored by the COPD Foundation and National Institutes of Health, almost half of men and women diagnosed with COPD (48 percent and 46 percent respectively) reported having between six and ten comorbidities. In a report released in December 2010 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), COPD is listed as the third leading cause of death in the U.S. and the fourth leading cause of death in the world.

"We look forward to bringing the success of our biannual conference to the U.S. for the first time this December," says Robert Stockley, MD, Professor of Medicine at the University Hospital in Birmingham, U.K. "At this conference, healthcare professionals will learn about the different approaches to treatment, challenges in diagnosis, managing comorbid conditions, and the future of COPD care."