STROKE ALLIANCE FOR EUROPE

Their core work

SAFE is a European patient advocacy and public health organization focused on stroke prevention, treatment, and outcomes. They serve as the patient and public voice in clinical research consortia, contributing expertise in patient-reported outcomes, public health policy, and dissemination of stroke-related findings to wider audiences. Their role in EU projects centers on ensuring research addresses real patient needs — from prevention strategies for elderly patients to personalized medicine for stroke survivors with complications like atrial fibrillation.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In the early period (2015-2017), SAFE focused on broad stroke outcomes — elderly patient complications, small vessel diseases, and neuroprotection through oxygen therapy. From 2017 onward, their involvement shifted toward more specific clinical interventions: personalised anticoagulant therapy, thrombectomy in challenging cases, and even frontier technologies like magnetically guided nanodevices. The trajectory shows movement from observational and preventive stroke research toward active, precision-oriented treatment strategies.

SAFE is expanding from traditional clinical trial advocacy into precision medicine and advanced therapeutic delivery, signaling interest in next-generation stroke treatments.

How they like to work

SAFE never coordinates projects — they join as a participant or third party, consistent with their role as a patient advocacy organization rather than a research institution. They operate in large consortia (84 unique partners across 7 projects), bringing the patient perspective rather than laboratory or clinical capacity. This makes them a reliable, low-overhead partner for clinical research consortia that need patient engagement, public health input, or dissemination reach.

SAFE has collaborated with 84 unique partners across 23 countries, giving them one of the broader networks in the stroke research community. Their connections span major European clinical centers, universities, and research hospitals, providing consortium builders with access to a well-connected patient advocacy hub.

What sets them apart

SAFE occupies a rare niche as a pan-European stroke patient organization embedded in clinical research. Unlike universities or hospitals, they bring the patient voice, public health policy perspective, and broad dissemination channels to research consortia. For any stroke-related EU project needing genuine patient engagement — not just a checkbox — SAFE is one of the few organizations with both the mandate and the track record.

Highlights from their portfolio

• ANGIE
  Their highest-funded project (EUR 102,875) and a significant departure into nanotechnology-based targeted drug delivery, showing willingness to engage with frontier therapeutic approaches.
• TENSION
  Addresses the critical clinical question of thrombectomy in extended time windows with explicit focus on patient-reported outcomes and value-based healthcare — directly aligned with SAFE's advocacy mission.
• PRESTIGE-AF
  Tackles the complex intersection of intracerebral haemorrhage and atrial fibrillation, a high-stakes personalised medicine challenge in secondary stroke prevention.