ERN RARE-LIVER Clinical Exchange Programme: Reports from Aarhus

“Thanks to the opportunity given by the ERN Rare Liver Exchange Program I visited the Department of Clinical Medicine Hepatology and Gastroenterology at the Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark. 

As a pediatric gastroenterologist my special interest are rare liver diseases, mainly Wilson’s disease (WD). I decided on Aarhus University Hospital because, like my own institution, it takes care of patients with WD with some excellent scientific achievements.

During my stay I had opportunity to take part in clinical rounds and scientific meetings in the department. I could also see patients with various liver diseases in an outpatient clinic. I admired the excellent teamwork and a well-structured organization at the hospital.

I also spent some time in the research labs, where I was introduced to the cutting-edge techniques such as cell culture and Copper-64 ( 64 Cu) positron emission tomography (PET)/CT. 64-Cu PET/CT was developed by Aarhus University Hospital to evaluate copper metabolism in humans and animal models. I was amazed to observe use of this technique and its potential to test experimental drugs in WD animal models. 

My Aarhus experience was incredibly inspiring and provided me with new perspectives to discuss future research and clinical collaboration in the evolving field of WD. I believe, it would be highly valuable for my further professional development.

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Professor Thomas Sandahl and his outstanding team at Aarhus University Hospital for their kind welcome and guidance, as well as to the ERN Rare Liver for their support.

Wojciech Janczyk, Children’s Health Memorial Institute, Warsaw, Poland

To learn more about the ERN Clinical exchange programme, please visit the dedicated section on our website or contact the ERN RARE-LIVER office directly.