Advancing understanding of lung health in Asian populations

NTU has set up a new research centre to fill the clinical and knowledge gap on respiratory diseases among Asians to better tackle respiratory diseases in Singapore.

The Academic Respiratory Initiative for Pulmonary Health (TARIPH) Centre for Respiratory Research Excellence, spearheaded by NTU’s Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, is specifically designed to address lung diseases in an Asian context.  

The Centre was launched by Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for Economic Policies, Mr Heng Swee Keat.

Emerging evidence has shown that current treatment for respiratory diseases, which were historically derived from non-Asian populations, is less effective for the Asian patient because of differences in environment, genetics, metabolism, and cultural beliefs. 

The TARIPH Centre brings together 46 local and international organisations and over 500 doctors, scientists, industry partners, policy makers and patients to spearhead transformative research on lung diseases in Asians.

The TARIPH Centre contains Singapore’s first patient panel for respiratory medical research. Patients with respiratory diseases are enlisted as research partners to help shape research design, directions and implementation on what matters to them and fellow patients, contributing to a greater understanding of the needs of Asian patients.