Dr. Schlesinger addressed the fact that Stephen Hawking died on the day of the conference. She said that he is probably the most famous patient with the neuromuscular disease and respiratory involvement.  He set an example to what a good management can bring He also taught us about black holes and over the last few years, we have been working together to close one of those black holes. 

In this conference, we put the emphasis on how we can we improve the quality of life of our patients, as opposed to how we should treat diseases. 

Dr. Schlesinger thanked all those involved in making this conference possible.