On 8 October 2026, the Belgian Brain Council will bring together representatives from the European Commission, Belgian authorities, academia, patient associations and the pharmaceutical industry at the University Foundation in Brussels to explore how health data altruism can move from a European concept to practical implementation.
Mental health will feature prominently, with Dr. Anaïs Mungo (ULB) exploring what information patients could contribute that is often missing from hospital records, including symptoms between consultations, sleep, daily activities, treatment adherence, side effects and quality of life. The programme will also bring together perspectives from the French Brain Council, German Brain Council, Croatian Brain Council and Hellenic Brain Council, alongside researchers, clinicians, patient organisations, public authorities and industry representatives, to explore the legal, ethical and practical conditions for voluntary health data sharing.