Hughes APS Trust

26/11/2025

🎉 Happy Birthday to Professor Graham Hughes! 🎉

Today we celebrate Prof. Hughes’ birthday — and also a defining moment in medical history.

42 years ago, in 1983, Prof. Hughes and colleagues published the landmark papers that first described the clinical syndrome now known as Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS or Hughes Syndrome). These early publications documented the association between lupus anticoagulant and later anticardiolipin antibodies. With blood clots, stroke, and pregnancy loss establishing APS as a distinct autoimmune condition.

This groundbreaking work transformed patient care globally and continues to save lives today.

We are also honoured to share photos of Prof. Hughes receiving his MBE at Windsor Castle, presented by The Prince of Wales, Prince William, in recognition of his outstanding services to Lupus and Hughes Syndrome.

Happy Birthday, Prof. Hughes — and thank you for everything you have given to the APS community.

11/11/2025

We’re putting your questions to Dr Arvind Kaul, Consultant Rheumatologist and Chair of the Hughes APS Trust, for a special APS Q&A video coming this December.

If there’s something you’ve always wanted to ask about Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS) — now’s your chance!

💬 Send us your question by 25 November via message or comment below.

Please note, we’re unable to give advice on individual treatments — you should always speak to your own doctor for personalised medical guidance.

30/10/2025

We recently shared the launch of our new website — and now we’re delighted to share a short welcome message from Professor Graham Hughes.
Many of you will know Professor Hughes as the doctor who first identified Hughes syndrome. His message perfectly captures the heart and purpose of our charity.
Watch below 👇

20/10/2025

Our New Website is Here! 🌐✨
We’re so excited to share our brand new Hughes APS Trust website with you!
It’s been designed to make finding information and support about Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS) easier than ever — with clear explanations, helpful resources, and real stories from people living with APS.
We’d love for you to take a look, have a browse, and let us know what you think! 👇
🔗 www.hughesapstrust.org
Thank you to everyone who helped make this possible — we can’t wait for you to see it!

16/07/2025

👋 Hello everyone — and sorry for the delay in sharing this! We've been busy behind the scenes getting our new website ready, and we can’t wait to show you more very soon.

📢 Unfortunately, there isn’t a recording of the recent Ten Topics event — we know many of you were hoping to catch up afterwards.

However, we’re pleased to share some images from the day 📸, and we hope they offer a glimpse into the fantastic discussions and learning that took place.

📝 Good news — Professor Hughes will be writing a blog post summarising the key points from the event, which we’ll be sharing soon!

Looking ahead, we hope future events like this can be recorded, allowing us to share the insights more widely with our patients and supporters.

Thank you for your understanding 💜

04/07/2025

📣 Today at Ten Topics in Rheumatology 🩺

We’re excited to announce that Professor Graham Hughes will be taking part in a 'Kerbside Consults in APS' session followed by an in-depth discussion, sharing his unmatched expertise on Hughes Syndrome (APS). He will be joined by Prof. Munther Khamashta (pictured below), Prof. Ricard Cervera and Dr Karen Schreiber.

Our Chair, Dr Arvind Kaul, will also be presenting at this important meeting.

Together, they’re helping to raise awareness, promote education, and drive forward understanding of autoimmune conditions like APS and lupus.

These sessions are vital for improving diagnosis, treatment, and patient care across the rheumatology community.

03/07/2025

We are incredibly proud to announce that Professor Graham Hughes has been awarded an MBE for his exceptional services to the fields of Lupus and Hughes syndrome, through his work with Lupus UK and the Hughes APS Trust (formerly the Graham Hughes International Charity).

This honour recognises his lifelong dedication, groundbreaking work, and tireless commitment to improving the lives of patients worldwide.

Please join us in congratulating Professor Hughes on this well-deserved recognition.

09/06/2025

❤️ Today is APS Awareness Day — and we’re marking it together. ❤️

As a community, we know APS. We know the symptoms, the setbacks, the strength it takes.
Today is about coming together to make sure others hear us — those still searching for answers, still waiting for diagnosis, still feeling alone.

Let’s raise our voices for them.
Let’s share our stories, our knowledge, and our hope.
Let’s remind each other: you’re not alone, and together we are stronger. ❤️💪

Empowering Through Education, Saving Lives Through Awareness

31/12/2022

Huge congratulations to Tracy Jallow Hutchinson - a staunch and hardworking supporter of our charity, who's tireless work with the medical community and beyond, has been rewarded with this honour. Her tireless work in raising awareness around Hughes Syndrome/APS is greatly appreciated.

Warning *long post*but worth reading - or skip to the end for the good news ~then scroll back and read it 😂
2022 has certainly been a year, my health was certainly not it’s finest I started 2022 recovering from a short hospital stay late last year and I have had a hospital appointment each week for about 40 weeks of the 52 weeks of the year . Suspected blood clots, physio, scans and way too many needles to count. Also throw in a dose of covid which to no surprise sent my immune system into over drive. Whilst managing my condition however I have managed to throw in some fun; theatre trips, art galleries,meals out trips away (although I’ve still not escaped the country since covid).I rocked it out in the Cavern and had some R&R in Bath .I continue to be blessed with my perfect family who do their best in all they do. My son who has grown into a fine,caring, hardworking and successful man. My daughter has worked extremely hard raising two beautiful children whilst working and also studying so hard ; getting distinctions in all her essays. Quietly in the background I have continued to use my story and experience to help support both the patient and medical community. I have presented at Kings College Health and Humanities Society . I have taught cultural competence to the whole of year 2 medical students at KCL I also worked in partnership with a medical student who was completing a special study component called art and pain’ and he created a fantastic piece of art that represented me and my condition .I attended Kings College university Teaching Festival to talk about the importance of Patient Educators in medical training and the value they add. I’ve worked closely (via zoom meetings) with a Professor and his team in Patagonia about measures that can be put in place to help chronically ill people return to work . In work I continue to facilitate a monthly support group for people that live with chronic pain which has grown to over 200 members ,bringing topics that can help and support them in their own journey, signposting them to relevant bodies but mostly being empathetic, understanding and an ear that will listen .
I genuinely do all of this to try to help other peoples journeys be better than mine ,if I can help people get a quicker diagnosis , the right support sooner then everything I have been through has purpose and meaning . It took me 17 years and near death experience to get a diagnosis, I carry the physical damage due to the diagnosis being missed ,kidney failure, double popliteal artery occlusion, a resected bowel and more. If I had a timely diagnosis I still would have had some issues but I’d would have been much more stable. So whilst I may come across as ‘here she goes again’ my passion for educating people on Antiphospholipid Syndrome will not disappear until everyone knows what it is and what it’s symptoms are . As a patient I will always continue to work with doctors to educate them away from the textbook ensuring they have a patients view.
II am therefore very excited,extremely proud and honoured to announce that I have graciously accepted an Honour from His Majesty The King for my services to the community and volunteering sector .I received this news mid December and have had to keep it confidential until the Honours were announced, (and believe me I had to check it was in the papers) I’m now over the moon that I can finally share it with you all.
I had always looked forward to celebrating the millennium year and instead I was miserable and in chronic pain recovering from being on a life support machine, so if your life is not where you would like it to be,remember life can change.
I certainly will be celebrating this New Year and I really hope you do too. So despite starting the year weakly I have finished on a strong note . It’s not how you start it’s how you finish .Thanks to everyone that has understood me and supported me ❤️
Wishing you a Happy New Year.

30/09/2022

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