The global pulmonary hypertension (PH) community has lost a deeply respected physician, researcher, and advocate with the passing of Lucilla Piccari. Her death is a profound loss for patients, colleagues, and patient organisations worldwide. Lucilla was known not only for her exceptional scientific knowledge, but also for her compassion, clarity, and unwavering commitment to improving the lives of people living with PH.

Lucilla worked as a physician and researcher at Hospital del Mar in Barcelona and was actively involved in international PH research and clinical collaboration. A significant part of her work focused on pulmonary hypertension associated with chronic lung diseases, including PH-ILD, a patient group with particularly high unmet needs. Through her research, registry work, and clinical expertise, she helped highlight the severe burden faced by patients with PH in the context of interstitial lung disease and other respiratory conditions, and she consistently advocated for greater attention, better diagnostics, and improved care for this often-overlooked population.

Beyond academia and clinical practice, Lucilla was deeply committed to education and patient engagement. She was a gifted communicator, able to explain complex medical concepts with clarity and empathy, making them accessible to patients, caregivers, and non-specialist audiences. Her presentations and interviews reflected not only scientific rigour, but also a genuine understanding of the lived experience of people with PH.

She also shared her expertise with PHA Europe, including as one of the presenters on the 2025 World PH Day webinar on pulmonary hypertension and global warming. In this role, she contributed valuable insight into how environmental factors and climate-related challenges may affect people living with PH, reinforcing the importance of addressing PH within a broader global health context.

When PHA Europe learned that Lucilla was seriously ill, a message of support was sent to her on behalf of the organisation. It was an opportunity to express gratitude for her clarity, compassion, and deep commitment to patients — qualities that had left a strong impression on everyone who had the privilege of working with her. That message reflected what so many patients and advocates felt: that Lucilla represented a rare combination of scientific excellence and genuine humanity, and that her work had made a lasting difference.

Lucilla Piccari will be remembered as a physician who truly listened, a researcher who focused on what mattered most to patients, and a collaborator who generously shared her knowledge with the global PH community. Her contributions — particularly for people living with PH associated with lung disease — will continue to shape the field and inspire those who carry this work forward. Her legacy lives on in the patients she helped, the colleagues she influenced, and the compassion she brought to everything she did.