Manuela Lourenço Marques
LWA – Lipedema World Alliance
Manuela Lourenço Marques has primary lymphedema and a complex clinical situation led her, in 2014, to cross the board to an internment in a Reference Centre where, in addition to an intense treatment, she acquired knowledge and lived experiences, not only around her illness but also on lipedema, which led her to immediately feel that these should be shared with all those who, like her, want a certified answer.
The path is not made alone, is her conviction and, in July 2015, she promoted the foundation of andLINFA, a patient organization that since its inception develops work also in lipedema and has had Lipedema patients in its governing bodies.
Manuela believes in networking, where patient representatives and healthcare professionals work as a team to find the best answer for the patient, their families, and carers.
The Chair of andLINFA is a board or founder member for other Associations and she is also an ePAG (European Patient Advocate) and ePAG co-chair in VASCERN.
In her professional area, Manuela is Senior Technician in management and she has, among others, a Pos-Graduation in International Project Management
About andLINFA:
The andLINFA is a non-profit Patients’ Association that was founded in July 2015 and which, since it was set up, has included Lipedema patients, who have always been part of its governing bodies. The patients it also represents include primary and secondary lymphedema patients and vascular rare disease suffers.
This Association, based in Portugal, blazes trails and establishes national and international networks searching for certified answers for patients, their families, and carers, and its organization includes an Advisory Board of leading professionals.
With a clear awareness of its duty to inform and its obligation to be part of all the processes in which patients are being referred, andLINFA also does not shy away from promoting discussions and stimulating paths towards the solutions it believes are essential, particularly when these are in the areas of research, social and health policies.
Above all, patients, families, and/or their carers find in andLINFA a multidisciplinary network where they can find validated answers and where they can contribute, with their personal involvement, to this constant search for improvement and support for healthcare in this area, and consequently work together to promote quality of life.