Backpack health reduces data-sharing barriers between the medical community and individuals with rare diseases

Technology has changed the way we approach medical care: health data is constantly being generated, medical discoveries are progressing more rapidly, and individuals are more connected across the world than ever before. Backpack Health is a global personal health record platform that harnesses the power of technology to connect users to their primary health data sources, the medical community, and researchers. By syncing with existing patient portals, health data can be stored on the Backpack Health platform and easily accessed and controlled by users in one connected interface. Individuals manage and collate their current and past conditions, genetic test results, symptoms, medications, procedures, labs, and other health data. Users are empowered to disseminate their information to clinicians, researchers, foundations, and pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies they connect with through the Backpack Health application. Here, we describe how two rare disease advocacy groups, The Marfan Foundation and Project Alive, utilize Backpack Health to connect with their target populations. Through secure transfer of pseudonymized data, groups can query their members to improve understanding of clinical features and to facilitate meaningful research. Responses to the groups' surveys show strong member engagement with high completion rates and increases in new Backpack Health users when surveys are deployed. Data from these surveys have been published and used to better inform clinical outcomes for treatment trials. By connecting users directly to the foundations, clinicians, researchers, and industry partners working on their condition, Backpack Health is instrumental in fast-tracking medical discoveries and treatment for rare diseases.