Big news — we’re thrilled to welcome AbbVie as a Gold Sponsor of World Vitiligo Day 2026 HQ in Chandigarh.
Their support means a great deal as the event returns to the city where the modern vitiligo movement truly found its voice. For many in our community, Chandigarh is where spirit, science, advocacy, and patient dignity came together in a way that still echoes today.
Vitiligo carries a heavy burden worldwide, but especially in India. For too many people, it’s not only about white patches on the skin — it’s the stares, the questions, the myths, the quiet isolation, and the daily negotiations at school, work, and family life.
That’s why support from companies like AbbVie matters.
Building momentum together
World Vitiligo Day has always been about more than a single event. Since its launch in 2011, it has evolved from a handful of determined advocates with an ambitious idea into the largest global platform dedicated to vitiligo awareness, education, and patient empowerment.
For readers who want the full story, we have published the complete history of World Vitiligo Day here — from its early beginnings to the global movement it has become today.
It is a global effort to improve awareness, reduce stigma, strengthen patient support networks, advance education, and bring together the many people working to improve the lives of those affected by vitiligo.
None of that happens without collaboration. Progress requires patients, physicians, researchers, advocacy organizations, industry partners, and policymakers moving in the same direction.
AbbVie has shown a serious commitment to immunology and inflammatory skin diseases. This aligns closely with the needs of the vitiligo community and strengthens our shared goal of meaningful progress.
Real progress needs more than one breakthrough. It takes science, education, access, patient support, physician training, and a stubborn refusal to let vitiligo remain misunderstood.
This sponsorship from AbbVie goes beyond money. It helps build the infrastructure — awareness campaigns, educational programs, patient outreach, and global collaboration — that keeps everything moving forward.
Over the coming weeks, we’ll share more about WVD-2026 and the partners making it possible.
To the AbbVie team: thank you for believing in this cause and joining us in Chandigarh.
– by Yan Valle, Prof. h.c., CEO VRF