Barry Barrett

Barry is 73 years old and was diagnosed with primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) over 20 years ago. He manages his PBC with diet, exercise, and medication. He continually searches for new advances in treatments, lifestyle changes and pharmaceuticals that can help slow the disease and minimize symptoms. He participates in various blogs and online sites dedicated to PBC research and information including Health Unlocked, PrimaryBiliaryCholangitis.Net, Rare Patient Voice, Stuff That Works and the PBC Foundation. He believes that finding a cure or substantially slowing the disease requires much more funding and research than we currently dedicate.

Barry is also an environmental activist. He was the Environmental, Safety and Health Business Unit Manager for The Bureau of National Affairs for 13 years, developing OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) training programs and environmental compliance programs to train workers on the proper handling, storage and disposal of hazardous wastes. Following retirement, he now volunteers as the Team Leader for his local Izaak Walton League Save Our Streams (SOS) program, monitoring stream health throughout Maryland and Virginia. He has also developed and conducted several programs for elementary and middle school students on the hazards of pollution and the importance of protecting our planet.

Barry has a passion to help those struggling with serious diseases. As an avid cyclist, he has participated in The Great Cycle Challenge to beat kids cancer for 6 years and he raised nearly $10,000 and ridden over 1300 miles.

He believes that good health is paramount to a happy and productive life and that adequate healthcare is a right that every person should have access to and advocates for positive and sweeping healthcare reforms.

Click here to read all of Barry's articles on PrimaryBiliaryCholangitis.net.