Join Us in Our Awareness Campaign on Saturday 15 March 2025
Board President
Mark Patterson, MD, PhD
Dr. Mark Patterson is a board certified pediatrician in Roanoke, Virginia, USA. He first became interested in narcolepsy and cataplexy in 2004 following the diagnosis of a family member. Since that time he has been active in the global narcolepsy community, formerly serving on the Board of a national narcolepsy non-profit organization, acting on the steering committee of a narcolepsy patient registry, and giving presentations to local/national/international professional organizations.
He is also the founder of the Annual Narcolepsy Bed Race, an event designed to raise awareness about the chronic condition. While this race was usually held in Virginia, in 2018 the event was taken to Dublin, Ireland for an international race. Teams from Ireland, the UK, and the US participated in the event.
In addition to his clinical work, he has taught general pediatrics to third-year medical students and pediatric resident physicians.
Mark received his BS degree in chemistry from Missouri Southern State University, his PhD in biological chemistry from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and his MD degree from Albany Medical College. He is a proud veteran of the United States Air Force, where he served as the head of the pediatric department at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and a member of both the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the American Chemical Society.
For more information, go to: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-patterson-4a5b8748/
Board Vice-President
Deborah Patterson, MA
Deborah Patterson also became interested in the field of narcolepsy and cataplexy over 15 years ago following the diagnosis of a close family member. Since then, she has given advocacy presentations at the local and national levels. She has worked closely with public school administrators to implement Individual Education Plans (IEPs) for students with this chronic condition. She has also volunteered countless hours to assist a national non-profit narcolepsy advocacy organization in its on-going efforts.
In addition, Deborah created a business producing and marketing post-surgical pouches for those patients who have undergone procedures for breast cancer treatment. The use of these devices has benefited hundreds of patients throughout the US during this life-changing time in their lives.
Deborah holds BA and MA degrees from Boston University. She has conducted and published on research in the field of transplant immunology. Ms. Patterson has taught biology classes at Harvard College, Boston University, and Lenoir-Rhyne University (NC).
