Medela and NEC Society Launch Global Campaign for NEC Awareness Month this May
In partnership with the NEC Society, Medela is mobilizing a global run on May 16 to advance awareness and support a shared mission to improve outcomes for premature infants and end necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC)
McHenry, Illinois, May 01, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Medela, a global leader in breast milk and healthcare technology, is partnering with the NEC Society in recognition of NEC Awareness Month this May, to raise awareness of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) – one of the leading causes of death in premature infants – and to support critical research, education, and advocacy efforts.
NEC Awareness Month is a global movement to spotlight one of the leading causes of mortality in premature infants and the urgent need for more research. Despite advances in neonatal care, NEC continues to disproportionately impact the most vulnerable infants in the NICU.[1]
Research shows that a mother’s own milk can reduce the risk of NEC by 58%, underscoring the vital role of human milk in protecting infant health.[2] Building on this evidence, Medela is committed to advancing research on human milk and better understanding the unique nutritional needs of this vulnerable population.
Medela’s partnership with the NEC Society, established in 2024 through the organization’s Champions Program, reflects a commitment that extends beyond financial support. A Clinical Nurse Educator at Medela currently serves as a volunteer chair of the NEC Society’s Nurse Ambassador Program, helping to advance clinical education and peer engagement. In 2025, Medela utilized its extensive network of U.S. hospital customers to distribute the NEC Society’s Family Resource Boxes, increasing awareness and access to critical information at a pivotal moment in care, and Bereaved Family Boxes for families who have tragically lost their child to the disease. That same year, Medela strategically hosted its Global Symposium immediately following the NEC Society Symposium, and provided an additional $45,000 in funding when grant support for the event was needed. Since the inception of the partnership, Medela has contributed a total of $75,000 to support the NEC Society’s mission.
“Necrotizing enterocolitis remains one of the most devastating conditions affecting premature infants and their families,” said Angela Lang, DNP-CNS, RN, IBCLC, Global Director of Medical Affairs & Clinical Education at Medela. “The evidence supporting mother’s own milk as a powerful protective factor against NEC is both compelling and motivating. Through our partnership with the NEC Society, we are working to ensure that more families have access to the education, resources, and lactation support needed to give their infants the best possible start.”
As part of this partnership, Medela is mobilizing employees across the globe to participate in the NEC Awareness Run & Walk on Saturday, May 16. The initiative aims to bring together employees, healthcare professionals, families, and advocates to raise funds, increase awareness, and build community around the shared goal of ending NEC.
The NEC Society, the world’s leading nonprofit dedicated to eliminating NEC, continues to drive progress through groundbreaking research, education initiatives, and advocacy for equitable access to care. Medela’s fundraising efforts will directly support these initiatives, helping to move closer to a future where all infants, regardless of circumstance, have access to life-saving human milk and comprehensive lactation support.
To learn more about Medela’s efforts or to support the cause, visit medela.com.
About Medela
Through advancing research, observing natural behavior and listening to our customers, Medela turns science into care while nurturing health for generations. Medela supports millions of moms, babies, patients and healthcare professionals in more than 100 countries all over the world. As the healthcare choice for more than 6 million hospitals and homes across the globe, Medela provides leading research-based breast milk feeding products, healthcare solutions for hospitals, and clinical education. Medela is dedicated to building better health outcomes, simplifying and improving life, and developing breakthroughs that help moms, babies and patients live their life to the fullest. For more information, visit medela.com.
About NEC Society
Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a devastating intestinal disease that primarily affects premature infants. NEC can also affect term babies, especially infants with a medical condition, like a congenital heart defect. NEC causes severe inflammation of the intestine, leading to bacterial infection and necrosis (tissue death).
NEC is often a life-changing diagnosis for babies and families. Although some babies fully recover from NEC, many of the infants who survive have lifelong complications. Tragically, NEC is a leading cause of death in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs).
Around one in ten very low birthweight infants develop NEC, and around 3,500 infants are diagnosed annually in the United States. Current treatment and prevention for NEC are inadequate. It is widely known that mother’s own milk (MOM) offers the best protection against NEC. When MOM is unavailable, pasteurized donor human milk is the next best option. To build a world without NEC, all babies need access to human milk, and maternal health and lactation support must be prioritized in and beyond the NICU.
The NEC Society is dedicated to building a world without NEC by advancing research, education, and advocacy, including through its multi‑institutional NEC Biorepository, led by Dr. Misty Good, which has enrolled more than 1,100 infants to support collaborative research to improve understanding of this complex disease.
[1] Necrotizing enterocolitis risk: state of the science, https://doi.org/10.1097/ANC.0b013e31824cee94
[2] The Impact of Human Milk on Necrotizing Enterocolitis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis, https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12051322
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