Lung Transplantation and Mucoviscidosis Clinic

The Cystic Fibrosis Clinic at Erasme Hospital was established more than 40 years ago by Professor Daniel Baran.
Since 1998, following the official designation by INAMI of the seven specialised reference centres, we have developed the ULB Cystic Fibrosis Institute, which operates across two geographically separate sites: children with cystic fibrosis receive care from paediatricians at the Queen Fabiola Children’s University Hospital (HUDERF), while adults with cystic fibrosis receive care from pulmonologists at the Erasme University Hospital site. The two sites work closely together, notably through a transition clinic and the bilateral exchange of physicians.

The ULB Cystic Fibrosis Institute is part of the European Cystic Fibrosis Society – Clinical Trial Network (ECFS-CTN) and offers innovative therapies to both children and adults.

What is mucoviscidosis?

Cystic fibrosis is a serious genetic disease affecting the respiratory and digestive systems, particularly the exocrine pancreas. In Belgium, more than 1,000 people are affected by this rare disease. It is primarily the lung disease that determines life expectancy, and every effort must be made to ensure optimal preventive and therapeutic management of this condition. Thanks to successive therapeutic advances since the 1960s, the survival of people with cystic fibrosis has fortunately gradually improved, and today more than 60% of people with cystic fibrosis in Belgium have reached adulthood and are receiving care in facilities adapted to adults.

In addition, in recent years, more targeted treatments for the underlying genetic and protein defect have been added to supportive treatments—which consist of physiotherapy, aerosol therapy and antibiotic therapy—and have had a very positive effect on the progression of lung disease, quality of life and treatment burden. In other words, a child with cystic fibrosis born in 2022 currently has very good chances of reaching adulthood, with a significantly improved life expectancy and quality of life.