About Us

The Future is in Sight

 We are the International Keratoconus Foundation,

Supporting Keratoconus Research, Education, Advocacy, and Service.

 

Our Mission

Our mission is to eliminate Keratoconus (KC) as a health issue. We attempt this through our Global Network which is totally patient-led. Our belief is that it is only through the open, free exchange of ideas that change can really be brought about. It is our hope that the support network will "take on a life of its own" and, therefore, be able to point us to the answers. Great strides have already been made by many of our members; you are most welcome to join the team.

If you sincerely care about helping patients succeed and working hard with the best and brightest people, we'll welcome you on-board. We're connected.

    In pursuit of excellence in Safety, Quality & Teamwork  

First is the beginning.

First kicks open the door and possibilities follow.

First resets everything.

First moves us forward, fast. We all want first.

First isn’t later, it’s now.

What will you do first for KC Freedom ?

Be first to live your life on your terms !

  Everything we do for patients, we do with patients  

  In the same way we wish to be treated every step of the way  

Our community’s patients are at the heart of what we do. We define our community to encompass all who are integral to the patient, which includes patient groups, patient organisations, patient advocacy groups, expert patients, individual patients, caregivers and family members of patients. This is why we partner with them at each stage of cutting-edge technology development and care delivery.

The role of patient groups is continuously evolving, and they are now more equipped than ever to define healthcare in their own terms. Patients are becoming increasingly involved in their treatment and care choices based on their own unique experiences.

Partnering with patients to further understand their everyday lives is essential to evolve the way we look at health conditions. It is through collaboration that we can truly personalise healthcare, taking new approaches to develop better medicines for and with the people that matter most.

  International Experience Exchange  

We believe that by working closely together with the whole community we can make even more of a difference for patients. Our commitment to patient-inclusivity unites us around a strong sense of purpose to put patients first, at the heart of healthcare.

Our international experience exchange with patients is a truly patient-led community with over 2800 patient representatives determined to achieve this purpose. It strives for patients to take a seat at the table with all stakeholders and have an equal voice in the healthcare ecosystem and in the decision-making.

Our advocacy leading care is literally healing health-care and offers a unique opportunity to come together as a global community to exchange experiences, find inspiration, and leave with practical, meaningful, and actionable ideas to improve the lives of patients and their families.

  All Together Better  

Mission Accomplished: 

Our original mission was focused on reducing the need for young people with Keratoconus to undergo invasive surgical procedures.

This mission has now been substantially accomplished; thanks to our society more patients are finding information on cornea-sparing treatments soon after they are diagnosed.

Our pursuit of excellence in Safety, Quality and Teamwork in research, education, and support for our fellow members - our mission was then accomplished for everyone.

We have accomplished our original mission to reduce the prevalence of more invasive forms of "treatment" through education. We have entered an era of ever increasing adoption of alternative treatment methods (which was considered routine for us decades before anyone else in the World) to avoid the need for more invasive procedures. This is a great achievement as this was our aim from the very beginning, and so our next mission is to eliminate Keratoconus as a health issue.

  History and Legacy  

Dating back to its origins more than two decade ago, when a progressive movement immersed in modern day Keratoconus patient and professional research started converging together for the first ever time in history, which continued to form the Global Keratoconus Foundation. An unifying alliance formation which since 2001 has been the response to there being absolutely no information or mis-information on the unprecedented eye condition which we really unequivocally knew about called Keratoconus ('KC'), and also due to not having no support available to make informed choices

Since then, in a great variety of roles around the world, a wider International rescue is taking place on a global-scale, and with it comes a new force for humanity and hope. Likewise, if you are skilled and passionate, we’d like to add your energy to ours.

At any given moment, on any given day, all around the world, our members are restlessly and effectively working for the sake of the most vulnerable among us - to restore and renew hope, dignity and freedom.

In 2004 as an alliance which uniquely represents, serves and protects all those who come to its ranks with a reach of having a global force in populace elected fellowship, mobilized to create - KC Freedom^™ - to pool together every known fact about Keratoconus in to one place, so that we could “join up the dot’s” internationally. This was a great success as it increased our members (both patients and professionals) knowledge so we could tackle this Keratoconus menace together more effectively then ever.

This helped members of the society to be the first to save and get their vision back with the use of modern, technically advanced, less invasive treatment options by utilizing the support network we had created in the wake of this investigation.

  Global Research and Investigative News  

Systematic investigation to establish facts and principles, and to collect information on Keratoconus came from only our independent organization. It's where the strategy – the least invasive comes first – originates from with regards to treatment options. This vision strategy has become global, leading us to become a standard bearer across the community's boarders. This saved and restored, in the least way possible our members sight, and more than that, it paved way to gave patients everywhere even more customized and personalized options than it could had ever have been imagined.

We have members who was the first to be out of the "Keratoconus hell" they where in after thoroughly researching every option they did not know they had, with them now having stable permanent vision through a least invasive way which they was more comfortable with. We have countless many who are now enjoying vision which they could not have dreamed about before, when before they met us they only had more invasive treatments to fall back on.

Our pioneering spirit helped to “explode” the interest in these much needed less invasive treatments. We turned it around whereby these treatments are now global, and also at the same time exposed the truth about Keratoconus.

Serving those who need us the most throughout the world to live with out the fear of the future, is what we do. From our efforts the organisation operates, with the support of members, in over 120 countries, and with a global freedom forum which has reached in the first year of establishment, unique session visits in excess of one million.

In regards of all the patients who seek laser eye surgery at laser vision clinics, it's generally known that around one in 50 has Keratoconus. The level of testing sophistication and testing regime supremacy used at laser eye surgery clinics are routinely much higher than at of a contact lens practice. Introductorily, this discrepancy in it self shows that there is an underlying unimageable undocumented incidence in the general population (current estimated global prevalence in the general population is approximately 1 in 375 to 1 in 2000 individuals, depending on the testing used [1][2][3]), and they are not aware of the life changing impact that can happen and of which can be avoided through timely and accurate screening and detection.

Reputation: 

Going from strength to strength, the incorporated society of the Global Keratoconus Foundation advanced an unique global alliance of experts representing patients of all nationalities across all stages of vision and promoting patient-centred healthcare around the world. 

Our Scientific Governing Directive Constitutes & Precedents are composed from and of expert patients and professionals who where the first to put together the largest research ever to be conducted on and for Keratoconus preventive, corrective and restorative innovations, with the Research & Development resulting in finally an actual treatment for Keratoconus when there was nothing before.

The end outcome to the accumulated consequential net force being, our society having the first to have members who have their vision saved without the need for invasive 'treatments', and the chilling drawbacks with them, which our members did not want.

Our members are International patients and professionals working at international, regional, national and local levels to represent and support the Keratoconus community to accomplish our mission.

Our achievements: Our International Networking Partners have contributed greatly to our Keratoconus community’s right to live with out fear for their vision. Through the teamwork of these partners our society continues implementing best practices through out the world. These programs have been cited for their high-quality of care that produces consistent, positive and sustainable outcomes.