Program partly funded by the Lupus Research Alliance equips the next generation of lupus leaders with advanced training and mentorship at leading European centers
NEW YORK, April 24, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The Lupus Research Alliance (LRA), the world’s largest private funder of lupus research, congratulates the recipients of the 2026–2027 European Lupus Society (SLEuro) Mentorship Program, an initiative supported by the Lupus Research Alliance and designed to cultivate the next generation of leaders in lupus research and clinical care. SLEuro is a European-based association focused on systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a complex, chronic autoimmune disease that affects millions of people worldwide.
There is a global need for specialists and researchers dedicated to lupus. The SLEuro Mentorship Program – funded in part by the Lupus Research Alliance – aims to address this by providing young physicians with an immersive 8‑week training experience at leading SLEuro Centers, where participants expand their clinical and research skills and develop a project to implement within their home institutions.
“Transforming lupus research and care requires a global network of talented clinicians and scientists,” Teodora Staeva, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer of the Lupus Research Alliance, said. “Partnering with SLEuro allows us to support the training of the next generation of leaders.”
The 20 selected recipients span 16 countries across Europe, Asia, Central America, and North America. They are:
- Laura Gabriela Amador Reyes (Mexico) – Hospital Clinic De Barcelona with Prof. Ricard Cervera
- Dan Buzescu (Romania) – University College London with Prof. Anisur Rahman
- Filipa Canhão André (Portugal) – Rheumatology Unit, Department of Medicine, University of Padua (Padua) with Prof. Andrea Doria
- Diana-Elena Cosau (Romania) – UIC – Unidade de Imunologia Clínica – Hospital de Santo António (Porto) with Prof. António Marinho
- Irina Andrada Craciun-Ionescu (Romania) – University Hospital of Iraklio and University of Crete Medical School (Iraklio) with Prof. George Bertsias; Prof. Mary Adamaki
- Roberto Depascale (Italy) – CHUC Lupus Clinic (Coimbra) with Prof. Luís Inês
- Stoimen Dimitrov (Bulgaria) – Karolinska University Hospital (Stockholm) with Prof. Ioannis Parodis; Dr. Aleksandra Antovic
- Natalia Dulak (Poland) – University of Leeds with Prof. Edward Vital
- Sabin George (India) – Cliniques Universitaires Saint-Luc (Bruxelles) with Prof. Frederic Houssiau
- Sonja Golubovic (Serbia) – Centre Hospitalier Universitaire (Chu) De Bordeaux (Bordeaux) with Prof. Christophe Richez
- Giedre Januskeviciute (Sweden) – Center for Genomics and Oncological Research (Genyo)(Granada) with Prof. Marta E. Alarcón-Riquelme
- Vladyslava Kachkovska (Ukraine) – Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology Unit Asst-Spedali Civili and University of Brescia with Dr. Micaela Fredi; Dr. Cecilia Nalli
- Illiasul Ibad Kanishantavida (India) – Leiden University Medical Center with Prof. Y.K. Onno Teng
- Tai-Ju Lee (Taiwan) – Leiden University Medical Center with Prof. Y.K. Onno Teng
- Anastasia Madenidou (United Kingdom) – Karolinska University Hospital (Stockholm) with Prof. Ioannis Parodis; Dr. Aleksandra Antovic
- Takehiro Nakai (Japan) – Birmingham City Hospital with Prof. John Reynolds
- Fathima Nujha Nasim (Sri Lanka) – CHUC Lupus Clinic (Coimbra) with Prof. Luís Sousa Inês
- Tatiana Pire García (Spain) – University of Leeds with Prof. Edward Vital
- Elena Ragusa (Italy) – Karolinska University Hospital (Stockholm) with Prof. Ioannis Parodis; Dr. Aleksandra Antovic
- Darya S. Jalaledin (Canada) – Centre De Référence Maladies Rares, Hôpital Cochin (Paris) with Prof. Nathalie Costedoat-Chalumeau
“This program is designed to nurture promising physicians at a pivotal point in their careers,” Luís Sousa Inês, MD, PhD, President, European Lupus Society, said. “Through hands‑on training and mentorship from world‑renowned experts, participants gain the skills and networks needed to make a meaningful impact in lupus research and patient care.”
The mentorship program complements broader scientific collaboration between the Lupus Research Alliance and SLEuro, which was showcased at the 15th European Lupus Meeting in Lisbon. To learn more about this partnership, visit here.
About Lupus
Lupus is a chronic, complex autoimmune disease that affects millions of people worldwide. In lupus, the immune system, meant to defend against infections, produces autoantibodies that mistake the body’s own cells as foreign, causing other immune cells to attack organs such as the kidneys, brain, heart, lungs and skin, as well as blood and joints. Ninety percent of people with lupus are women, most often diagnosed between the ages of 15–45. Black, Latinx, Indigenous, Asian and Pacific Islander people are disproportionately affected by lupus.
About the Lupus Research Alliance
The Lupus Research Alliance is the largest non-governmental, non-profit funder of lupus research worldwide. The organization aims to transform treatment by funding the most innovative lupus research, fostering scientific talent, and driving discovery toward better diagnostics, improved treatments and, ultimately, a cure for lupus. Because the Lupus Research Alliance’s Board of Directors funds all administrative and fundraising costs, 100% of all donations go to support lupus research programs.
For more information or to donate to lupus research, visit the LRA at LupusResearch.org and on social media at: X, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
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SOURCE Lupus Research Alliance
