The Mitochondrial Medicine meeting held in Hinxton, Cambridge in May 2018 not only provided an excellent opportunity to meet with other experts in this field, but also allowed for highly valuable visits to the UK NHS Highly Specialised Service for Rare Mitochondrial Disorders laboratories and clinics based at centres in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Oxford and London.  

The NHS Highly Specialised Service for Rare Mitochondrial Disorders provides a comprehensive platform for the diagnosis and management of patients and families affected by mitochondrial disease in the UK. 

The service is a collaboration between centres in Newcastle-upon-Tyne (NCL), Oxford and London (UCL) and provide not only specialised clinical and diagnostic services but are dedicated to high quality, much needed research into these disorders. 

The main aims of this trip were to:

1. Gain insight into how the world-renowned UK mitochondrial disease diagnostic services is run with a view to help guide streamlining and improvement of our own diagnostic services with current limited available resources.

2. Establish collaborations that could help strengthen our research and diagnostic capabilities.

3. Learn about current research outputs and directions in mitochondrial disease through attending the Mitochondrial Medicine Meeting, which is well attended by researchers from across Europe, USA and elsewhere.

Funding was obtained for this purpose from both the NHLS and University of Cape Town.

The itinerary involved two working days each at Newcastle University, Oxford and UCL followed by the Mitochondrial Medicine Conference in Hinxton, Cambridge.