Each year, approximately 3,500 infants in the US develop necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), a devastating inflammatory disease of the gut that most often affects premature or medically fragile infants. Tragically, up to 25% of these babies die from the disease. Infants who survive NEC often struggle with lifelong complications.

Despite NEC causing 1 in 10 deaths in NICUs across the country, relatively little progress has been made in understanding, preventing, and treating the disease.

Awareness is key to advancing our work and we need the help of our elected leaders to use their platforms to elevate the voices of the patients and families who often suffer in isolation when a baby is diagnosed with this devastating disease.