JULY EDITION 2026

Editorial

The 3rd World Congress on Rare Skin Diseases (WCRSD 2026) ) was held, from July 1st to 3rd at the Palais des Congrès in Versailles, providing an opportunity to review rare skin diseases with  leading specialists in the field (more details below). 

The Fondation René Touraine (FRT) has launched a partnership with the DEMAIN fund, which supports associations that guarantee children’s access to their fundamental rights and work to improve the physical and mental health of women. Within this framework, DEMAIN supports the FRT’s actions for children affected by rare and severe skin diseases. These conditions remain poorly understood by healthcare professionals. Training medical and paramedical teams and building  cooperation networks between them is a key level for change in patient care. Specifically, the DEMAIN fund financed the participation of medical and paramedical teams from emerging countries in the 3rd WCRSD 2026 (see below for more information on DEMAIN fellows). 

Get also some update on our activities.

The FRT team wishes you a wonderful summer!

Therapeutics in Dermatology

Four updated chapters and a new chapter (Chronic prurigo/Prurigo nodular) has been translated into English for healthcare professionals, on the website Therapeutics in Dermatology:

• Actinic prurigo 
• Prurit sine malteria
• Chronic Prurigo / Prurigo nodularis (new chapter)
• Papular urticaria
• Basal cell carcinoma

More chapters to be updated soon!

SPIN

Routine rotation of the SPIN leadership

The Scientific Committee of SPIN opened a new chapter on June 1st, 2026 with its new presidential trio for the next three years:

• Prof Tiago Torres (Portugal) is the new president 
• Prof Julia-Tatjana Maul (Switzerland) is the new president-elect
• Prof Wolf-Henning Boehncke (Switzerland) is the past-president

The Fondation Rene Touraine takes the opportunity to warmly thank Prof Phyllis Spuls (Netherlands) for 9 years of dedication to SPIN as president-elect, president, and past-president. 

SPIN will continue to go full speed ahead with the above-mentioned composition in the leadership. Please continue to support our network as you have done in the past.

SYMPOSIUM SPIN & SOLAPS+DI 

THROWBACK

On June 6th, 2026, our first SPIN & SOLAPS+DI joint symposium took place during a joint congress with the Brazilian Society of Dermatology in Rio de Janeiro.

It was a great success with more than 500 attendees!

We discussed hidradenitis suppurativa, atopic dermatitis, and the emerging role of GLP-1 receptor agonists in immune-mediated diseases.

A big thank you to everyone who attended, and especially to María Victoria Suarez, Cesar Gonzalez, Antonio Martorell and André Carvalho for their excellent presentations and valuable insights.

SPIN is looking forward to pursuing this collaboration with SOLAPS+DI.

SPIN SYMPOSIUM – EADV CONGRESS 2026

SAVE THE DATE !

Following the success of the 2024 & 2025 editions, SPIN will host again a symposium during the EADV congress and this time in Vienna! It will take place on Septembre 30th, 2026 from 8h30 until 10h00am CEST.

A program on the theme of Core Outcome Set in Dermatology gathering expert speakers: 

• 10 min   SPIN – who we are, and what is in there for you? – Tiago Torres (Portugal)
• 10 min   What is a Core Outcome Set, and why is it important to your patients? – Phyllis Spuls (Netherlands)
• 15 min   Checklist and Manual Core Outcome Set development – Jan Kottner (Germany)
• 15 min   Dermatology-specific patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs): A scoping review emphasizing the need for further studies of measurement properties -Sandrine Herbelet (Belgium)         
• 10 min  COSEB – Eva Korte (Netherlands)
• 10 min  Historic – Amit Garg (US)
• 10 min   HOME uptake – Yaël Anne Leshem (Israël)
• 10-15 min- Panel discussion

We are hoping to see many of you there!

🎓 SPIN E-LEARNING 

SPIN Fundamentals 2026: for healthcare professionals new to the field of chronic inflammatory skin diseases

5 presentations from sessions of SPIN2025 congress are available.

To watch them subscribe for free by clicking on the image below👇🏼

SPIN World Tour 2026: for dermatologists & scientists specialized in chronic inflammatory skin diseases 

Our  first webinar of the year occurred on April 23rd.

To watch the replay register by clicking on the image below👇🏼   

Be aware it is still possible to access some of our 2025 trainings!

https://www.spindermatology.org/knowledge-center

Rare Skin Diseases Network

Success of the 3rd World Congress on Rare Skin Diseases

The 2026 edition of the WCRSD, held at the Palais des Congrès de Versailles from July 1 to 3, was a success.

A few numbers that tell the story 👇

📌 524 registrations

🎤 71 speakers

🌍 64 countries represented

📣 27 sessions, workshops and symposia

Behind those figures, a dense, rich and innovative scientific programme 🔬

🤔 Patient session on mental health

💭 Science and Ethics session

🩺 Paramedic session

👀 Overlapping specialites and multidiciplinary sessions with ophatlmologists

🌟 Rising Stars, Puzzling Cases and Selected Communications sessions

Diagnosis, research, patient care and quality of life, all under one roof.

To the medical teams, scientists, patient representatives, policy makers and industry partners who joined us in Versailles: thank you. You turned a shared ambition into a real step forward for patients. ✨

Congratulations to the 7 recipients of the DEMAIN Fund and 1 recipient of the French Society of Dermatology (SFD) grant

We are especially proud to have supported the attendance of 8 fellows at WCRSD 2026, through the DEMAIN Fund and the SFD. Investing in the next generation of specialists is at the heart of our mission.

DEMAIN funds:

– Abdelaziz Alahlafi, Libyan Society of Dermatology, Tripoli, Libya

– Kakha Bredvadze, Tbilisi State Medical University, Tbilisi, Georgia 

– Paul Mendoza, Psoriasis Philippines, Makati City, Philippines

– Nelson Mosha, Regional Dermatology Training Center, Moshi, Tanzania

– Thi Thu Phuong Nguyễn, Bach Mai Hospital, Hanoi, Vietnam

– Ayelet Ollech, Shaare Zedek Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israël

– Maria Josefina Pavon, Hospital Aleman, Buenos Aires, Argentina

Message from Elise Curioni, Head of the DEMAIN Fund, to the award recipients:

Dear laureates, 

DEMAIN funds is proud to support the training of 7 MDs coming from all the world and getting together on the occasion of the 3rd World Congress on Rare Skin Diseases.

Rare and severe skin diseases affect patients facing a complex patient journey, often in settings where  high level expertise is limited. Offering MDs opportunities to learn more, meet  and improve their daily practice is directly taking action for patients and next generation. 

We are deeply admiring your commitment and the diversity of your journey. This higlight the international impact of this fight. 

Congratulations to each of you and thank you to Fondation René Touraine for the selection and all the work! 

SFD:

– Laura Boix, Cayenne University Hospital, Guyanne, France

Congratulations!

Winners of the art contest 2026 : MY SKIN, MY STORY

Our warmest congratulations to the winners of the 2026 drawing contest. This year’s theme was « My skin, my story ». We received 65 drawings from 46 participants across various regions of the world.

Thank you all for your participation!

Find the winners of the 2026 edition by clicking here

Find out more: https://thestoryofmyskin.org/

Mosaic of all participants’ drawing below 👇🏼

Partnership with Brain Impact Neuroscience

Charity Run on May 22nd

On Friday, May 22nd at 5:00 PM, our partner Brain Impact Neuroscience organized its first “Social Run” for the benefit of the René Touraine Foundation. It was a friendly 6 km run, followed by waffles to share and a tombola prize. The event took place at the Seed Factory, and all participants were required to make a donation to the FRT to take part.

The donations will fund research grants for young dermatologists.

A few photos from the event!

Stay tunned for the future events of this collaboration!

Partnership with the Fondation Française de l’Ordre de Malte

The establishment of treatment room for children suffering from epidermolysis bullosa in Egypt, at the Al Azhar University Hospital in New Damietta, made possible through a partnership between the Fondation René Touraine and the Fondation Française de l’ordre de Malte, is progressing steadily.