National MS Society Invests Over $21 Million In New Research

NEW YORK, Nov. 5, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Multiple Sclerosis Society has committed over $21 million to support an expected 78 new MS research projects as part of a comprehensive research strategy aimed at stopping MS, restoring function that has been lost, and ending the disease forever.

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 over $53 million in 2015 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.

"These new grants are part of a comprehensive strategy to accelerate research that will propel the knowledge to end MS and identify everyday solutions that change the lives of people with MS," says Cynthia Zagieboylo, president and CEO of the National MS Society.

Just a few of the new cutting-edge research projects include a study at Baylor College of Medicine investigating a protein that may play a role in myelin repair and replacement of lost nerve cells, two events that may improve progressive MS;  a University of Glasgow study looking at whether adult stem cells from the nose hold promise for nervous system tissue repair; and an exploration at Harvard's Brigham and Women's Hospital asking whether specific brain circuits are involved in the profound fatigue experienced by people with MS. Three new commercial partnerships are propelling the development of treatments targeting progressive MS.

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 a broad spectrum of existing therapies,  none of which existed just several decades ago, and continues to be a driving force of MS research to move closer to a world free of MS.

Download details about the new research awards.

About Multiple Sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis, an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system, interrupts the flow of information within the brain, and between the brain and body. Symptoms range from numbness and tingling to 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 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 MS 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 programs and services designed to help people with MS and their families move their lives forward.  In 2014 alone, through the Society's comprehensive nationwide network of programs and services it  devoted $122.2 million to help more than one million individuals to connect to the people, information and resources they need. To move us closer to a world free of MS, the Society also invested $50.2 million to support more than 380 new and ongoing research projects around the world. The Society is dedicated to achieving a world free of MS. Learn more at nationalMSsociety.org.

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SOURCE National Multiple Sclerosis Society

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