About Ben's Friends

We Build Patient Communities

In 2006, Ben Munoz suffered a life-threatening brain hemorrhage. He created an online support community so that he could connect with other patients. The support he received, and later, gave within that community led to the founding of Ben's Friends, a network of patient communities dedicated to providing support for patients of rare diseases like himself.

Focused on Patient Support

There are some amazing non-profit organizations all around the world doing fantastic work to raise awareness, raise money, and provide medical information to patients, friends, and family. We decided to complement their work, rather then duplicate. Therefore, we chose to concentrate all of our efforts on learning how to create and run compassionate, responsive patient communities.

Why Rare Diseases?

A disease or disorder is defined as rare in Europe when it affects less than 1 in 2000 citizens and in the USA when it affects fewer than 200,000 people. Rare diseases may affect more than 60 million people worldwide.

There are many well-known organizations and companies helping patients with more common medical conditions. If you have a rare disease, the same level of support is not yet available. If you have a rare disease, it is difficult to find a real connection you need when you need it. Ben's Friends mission is to provide a safe place to make that connection.