On december 4 and 5, the force of the Téléthon will be with you
They are #SoStrong! Families who fight on a daily basis against the disease, researchers who turn genes into medicine, volunteers, donors and partners who, every year, brave the cold… Thanks to them joining forces for the past 30 years, a medical revolution is underway today! Together, let’s keep on giving children and patients the strength to heal!
“For 30 years, the AFM-Téléthon has supported gene therapy against all odds. Thanks to the Téléthon, it funded hundreds of researchers around the world and created a dedicated laboratory, Généthon. Today, the first gene therapy drugs save the life of children suffering from rare diseases and these innovative treatments also benefit more frequent diseases. A medical revolution is very much underway!” said Laurence Tiennot-Herment, President of AFM-Téléthon.
The 2020 Téléthon will bear the faces of victories against the disease, thanks to the mobilization of everyone: Hyacinthe, Soheÿnn, Augustin, Alix, Jules… and many other children who benefited from a gene therapy which allows them to find the strength to grow up. And the results are here: their parents can see them progressing, breathing on their own, moving, and living.
It will also convey the voices of families affected by a disease that is very close to treatment and who keep on fighting, fortified by progressing research and by the hope that it will become a reality for them too. Indeed, clinical trials for neuromuscular diseases multiply, as is the case for Duchenne muscular dystrophy or a form of Limb-Girdle muscular dystrophy, as well as for other liver and eye rare diseases…
This year, the Téléthon will embark viewers on original adventures! Backstage at the Louvre – opened especially for a few families, in the air on board a hang-glider, in tandem with a cycling medalist during a stage of the Tour de France, or even on a slackline tight in the heart of Aiguille du Midi, 300 meters above the ground… Thrills guaranteed!
Not only that! All over France, cities with the letters for.t in their name (i.e. “strength” in French) – from Fort-de-France to Beaufort, from Alfortville to Forcalquier – will rally to wear the colors of the Téléthon! French expats in Frankfurt and other cities abroad will also participate.
And because Téléthon volunteers are full of strength, they will display the strength of their commitment in cities, villages and online, through record-breaking events in terms of originality.
Images and testimonies that you will discover on France Televisions channels on December 4 and 5, during the 30-hour broadcast, in the presence of Matt Pokora, patron of the 2020 Téléthon, and of many supportive artists.
To know more, follow us : Telethon2020.fr