National MS Society Invests Over $25 Million In New Research And Clinical Training To Stop Multiple Sclerosis, Restore Function And End MS Forever

NEW YORK, April 6, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Multiple Sclerosis Society has committed over $25 million to support an expected 60 new MS research projects, as well as 7 MS clinical training awards. These are part of a comprehensive strategy aimed at stopping MS, restoring function that has been lost, and ending the disease forever – for every single person with MS.  

This financial commitment is the latest in the Society's relentless research efforts to move us closer to a world free of MS, and part of a projected investment of $54 million in 2016 alone to support more than 380 new and ongoing studies around the world.  The Society pursues all promising paths, while focusing on priority areas including progressive MS, nervous system repair, gene/environmental risk factors and wellness and lifestyle.

Just a few of the new cutting-edge research projects include an ambitious project at Harvard and the University of California, San Francisco that tracks a group of people with MS over time and creates a platform to enable researchers worldwide to identify factors that drive MS progression; a clinical trial in Germany and the U.S. testing an online program to treat MS-related depression to increase wellness; a study at Ohio State University looking at whether low vitamin D in early life increases the risk of developing MS; and a Collaborative MS Center at Mayo Clinic in Minnesota focusing on whether abnormal energy production in nerve cells contributes to nerve degeneration, and strategies to correct it in MS. The Society is also launching 7 clinical training awards to increase the number of MS specialists who can provide the highest quality of care to people with MS.  Download details about the new research awards.

"The comprehensive nature of these new research investments is very exciting," notes Bruce Bebo, PhD, National MS Society's Executive Vice President, Research.  "We're funding scientific breakthroughs that will propel the knowledge we need to end MS and identify everyday solutions that change the lives of people with all forms of the disease."

Multiple sclerosis disrupts the flow of information within the brain and between the brain and the body.  Most people with MS are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, with at least two to three times more women than men being diagnosed with the disease.  Worldwide, over 2.3 million people live with the unpredictable challenges of multiple sclerosis. 

To find the best research with the most promise, the National MS Society relies on more than 130 world-class scientists who volunteer their time to carefully evaluate hundreds of proposals every year.  This rigorous evaluation process assures that Society funds fuel research that delivers results in the shortest time possible. 

There are FDA-approved therapies that can impact the underlying disease course in people with the more common forms of MS.  However, none of these can stop progression or reverse the damage to restore function.  National MS Society-funded research paved the way for existing therapies – none of which existed just several decades ago – and continues to be a driving force of MS research.

About Multiple Sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis is an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system that disrupts the flow of information within the brain, and between the brain and body. Symptoms vary from person to person and range from numbness and tingling, to walking difficulties, fatigue, dizziness and pain, to depression, blindness and paralysis. The progress, severity and specific symptoms of MS in any one person cannot yet be predicted, but advances in research and treatment are leading to better understanding and moving us closer to a world free of MS. Most people with MS are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, with at least two to three times more women than men being diagnosed with the disease. MS affects more than 2.3 million worldwide.

About the National Multiple Sclerosis Society
The Society mobilizes people and resources so that everyone affected by multiple sclerosis can live their best lives as we stop MS in its tracks, restore what has been lost and end MS forever. 

To fulfill this mission, the Society funds cutting-edge research, drives change through advocacy, facilitates professional education, collaborates with MS organizations around the world, and provides services designed to help people with MS and their families move their lives forward. Last year alone, through our comprehensive nationwide network, the Society devoted $122.2 million to help more than one million individuals connect to the people, information and resources they need. To move closer to a world free of MS, the Society also invested $54 million to support more than 380 new and ongoing research projects around the world.

Early and ongoing treatment with an FDA-approved therapy can make a difference for people with multiple sclerosis. Learn about your options by talking to your health care professional and contacting the National MS Society at nationalMSsociety.org or 1-800-344-4867.

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SOURCE National Multiple Sclerosis Society

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