[16] The rare disease topics in the 2012 and 2013 FP7 Health Calls were: 'Support for international rare disease research; Clinical utility of –omics for better diagnosis of rare diseases; Databases, biobanks and clinical ‘bio-informatics’ hub for rare diseases; Preclinical and clinical development of orphan drugs; Observational trials in rare diseases; Best practice and knowledge sharing in clinical management of rare diseases (2012) and Development of imaging technologies for therapeutic interventions in rare diseases; New methodologies for clinical trials for small population groups (2013).

[16] The rare disease topics in the 2012 and 2013 FP7 Health Calls were: 'Support for international rare disease research; Clinical utility of –omics for better diagnosis of rare diseases; Databases, biobanks and clinical ‘bio-informatics’ hub for rare diseases; Preclinical and clinical development of orphan drugs; Observational trials in rare diseases; Best practice and knowledge sharing in clinical management of rare diseases (2012) and Development of imaging technologies for therapeutic interventions in rare diseases; New methodologies for clinical trials for small population groups (2013).

Establish and implement plans or strategies for rare diseases at the appropriate level or explore appropriate measures for rare diseases in other public health strategies, in order to aim to ensure that patients with rare diseases have access to high-quality care, including diagnostics, treatments, habilitation for those living with the disease and, if possible, effective orphan drugs, and in particular:

Establish and implement plans or strategies for rare diseases at the appropriate level or explore appropriate measures for rare diseases in other public health strategies, in order to aim to ensure that patients with rare diseases have access to high-quality care, including diagnostics, treatments, habilitation for those living with the disease and, if possible, effective orphan drugs, and in particular:

(11) rare diseases have been identified as a priority area for Community action within the framework for action in the field of public health; the Commission, in its communication concerning a programme of Community action on rare diseases within the framework for action in the field of public health has decided to give rare diseases priority within the public health framework; the European Parliament and the Council have adopted Decision No 1295/1999/EC of 29 April 1999 adopting a programme of Community action on rare diseases within the framework for action in the field of public health (1999 to 2003)(5), including actions to provide information, to deal ...[+++] with clusters of rare diseases in a population and to support relevant patient organisations; this Regulation implements one of the priorities laid down in this programme of action,

Most rare diseases are genetic diseases, the others being rare cancers, auto-immune diseases, congenital malformations, toxic and infectious diseases among other categories.