The External Advisory Board (left image) and the people that form the OSTASKILLS consortium (right image) during the second Annual OSTASKILLS Meeting, held in Basel.

Welcome to OSTASKILLS 

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the leading cause of disability among older adults, and its prevalence is on the rise due to factors like aging populations and obesity. The United Nations projects that by 2050, over 20% of the global population will be over 60, with a conservative 15% suffering from symptomatic OA, and a third of these individuals facing severe disability. The latest Global Burden of Disease study (GBD 2013) estimates that 242 million people worldwide live with symptomatic OA of the hip and/or knee, resulting in poor quality of life and suffering. However, this does not fully capture the real impact and numbers of people affected, as it doesn't include OA in other body parts.

To make progress towards finding real OA treatments there is a strong need to engage this worldwide epidemic disease in a holistic and multidisciplinary way, and hence train the next generation of daring scientists & doctors on translational research in an innovative approach. People daring to collaborate with companies or build their own so new treatments can be developed and brought to the patients, people daring to talk to patients what they need.

The Marie Curie OSTASKILLS doctoral progamme provides this unique training experience for PhD students to engage in a holistic approach bringing innovations in medical devices, ATMPs and pharmaceutical products aimed at treating OA, to patients and the heath care markets.

ReumaNetherlands as coordinator and five research hosts (Maastricht Univeristy, Basel University Hospital, Wurzburg University, University Twente and AO research foundation) to host the doctoral candidates and provide state-of-the-art training. Furthermore, training in research centres is complemented with internships in participating companies active in this field, to allow the doctoral candidates a multiangle view (both fundamental and clinical view, as well as business and legislative view) on translation. 

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