07/21/2026
Celebrating 40 years of community, hope, and incredible medical dedication! 🌟
We are thrilled to share a major milestone from our 40th Anniversary Conference. This year, we had the distinct honor of presenting four Lifetime Achievement Awards to an extraordinary group of doctors who have dedicated their careers to supporting the patients in the vascular anomalies community. Their groundbreaking work and tireless care have changed countless lives, and we are profoundly grateful for their impact.
Dr. Denise Adams, Director of the Comprehensive Vascular Anomalies Program (CVAP) at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Dr. Adams has been a significant pioneer in the shift toward targeted medical therapy for many vascular anomalies conditions. Her leading role in multi-center clinical trials led to international recognition as a leader in the field of complex vascular anomalies. Dr. Adams’ CVAP program is acknowledged by many as a top tier clinic, and she continues to establish new frontiers for VACs though leading innovative research, establishing with Dr. Michael Jeng the CaNVAS research consortium, and RDCRN’s ARDVARC consortium.
Dr. Francine Blei is the director of the Hemangioma and Vascular Malformations Program at Hassenfeld’s Children’s Hospital at NYU Langone. Drawn to the field in part because so little was known, her interest led to her involvement in a vascular anomalies program, earning a dual appointment in Pediatrics and Plastic Surgery. She was known as a catalyst for many academic and clinical collaborations. She directed a Continuing Medical Education course, Controversies in Vascular Anomalies, from 2000 until it was recently adopted by ISSVA. Dr. Blei’s practice remains focused on vascular anomalies in a practice that sees patients of all ages.
Prof. Laurence Boon, Plastic Surgeon and Co-Director of the Brussels Vascular Anomalies Center at St Luc since 2012, Prof. Boon combined master surgical skill with cutting-edge translational laboratory discoveries. While working with John Mulliken at Harvard she was paired in research with Prof. Vikkula. Working as a team since Boston, they designed and led the landmark VASE trials, the European sirolimus study. Her patient-first methodologies validated custom sirolimus dosing, demonstrating that target-specific clinical care is safe, scalable, and lifesaving. With 223 publications 18,746 citations, many awards and honors, Prof Boon is a member of many scientific societies, co-chair of the European Reference Network on Vascular Anomalies (VASCERN), a coordinator of multinational clinical trials, and an expert reviewer.
Prof. Miikka Vikkula, Professor of Human Genetics and Co-Director of the de Duve Institute in Brussels, began his journey at the University of Helsinki, then at Harvard Medical School’s Dept of Cell Biology where he and Prof Boon began working together. His professional titles, awards and honors, and his role as a genetic expert are too numerous to list in one article - he is active in multiple Belgian public organizations, is sought after as a scientific evaluator, reviewer for 35 genetic journals, and maintains active membership in numerous scientific societies. His teaching experience and his reputation as a very knowledgeable and desired speaker, his more than 430 publications with more than 27,458 citations, still do not adequately depict his contributions to vascular anomalies populations internationally.
✨ The Highlight of the Evening ✨ The room was filled with love and immense gratitude as we honored our incredible founder, Judy Vessey, with a Lifetime Achievement Award. Forty years ago, Judy had a vision to ensure no one had to navigate this journey alone. Because of her fierce determination, heart, and leadership, KT Support Group has grown into the beautiful, strong lifeline it is today.
Judy, thank you for being our guiding light. And to our phenomenal award-winning doctors, thank you for your unmatched expertise and dedication. Here’s to 40 years of legacy, and to the future we are building together! 🥂❤️
