TY - JOUR T1 - Patient voices at the ERS International Congress 2014: highlighting LAM JF - Breathe JO - Breathe SP - 283 LP - 285 DO - 10.1183/20734735.015814 VL - 10 IS - 4 AU - Monica Fletcher AU - Iris Bassi Y1 - 2014/12/01 UR - http://breathe.ersjournals.com/content/10/4/283.abstract N2 - Lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM) is a rare disease (the mean±sd incidence of LAM per million female population between 2004 and 2008 was 0.31±0.058 cases per year in the USA, 0.23±0.076 in the UK and 0.37±0.26 in Switzerland [1]), which almost exclusively affects women at the stage of their lives where they may start to have children. The condition itself is characterised by the development of lung cysts formed from the proliferation of abnormal smooth muscle cells and chyle-filled cystic lesions in the lymphatic system. The main symptoms of LAM include breathlessness, wheeze, chest tightness and can include cough. Patients with LAM often experience one or more pneumothorax, particularly during pregnancy; and it is the development of these which may indicate a diagnosis of LAM [2]. Figure 1 Iris Bassi: European LAM Federation President The impact of LAM is huge: primarily women in the prime of their life with new families and their hopes and expectations for the future being limited by an attack on their lungs. One of the major issues surrounding LAM, as with many other rare diseases, is the lack of awareness amongst … ER -