Zabludowicz Center for Autoimmune Diseases Opens

Prof. Yehuda Shoenfeld, director of the new center

Sheba's new Shlomo and Pola Zabludowicz Center for Autoimmune Diseases has now opened. The center centralizes under one roof all aspects of autoimmune research and treatment, and brings together physicians and researchers from multidisciplinary fields such as internal medicine, clinical immunology, autoimmunity, rheumatology, ophthalmology, neurology, obstetrics and gynecology.

The center is directed by Prof. Yehuda Shoenfeld, a leading clinical immunologist and an expert in rheumatology and allergy, and a prolific researcher and author. Shoenfeld has published more than 1,500 papers in scientific journals such as Blood, Cancer, Circulation, Immunology, Lancet, Nature, New England Journal of Medicine, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and more. He also has authored and edited 25 books, some of which are considered cornerstones of science and clinical practice, such as The Mosaic of Autoimmunity and the textbook Autoantibodies. He is also the founder and editor of the Israel Medical Association Journal and the internationally known journals Autoimmunity Reviews and J Autoimmunity.

Autoimmune diseases afflict an estimated 20 percent of the population. These diseases result from a dysfunctional immune system in which the body attacks its own organs, tissues and cells. Autoimmune diseases include rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes, Crohn's disease, lupus, and about 80 other syndromes. Poor quality of life, high health care costs, and substantial loss of productivity are some of the social and financial burdens imposed by these debilitating diseases, which quite often are fatal.