Unlocking the Mystery of Multiple Sclerosis With Tech

The user-friendly app is a comprehensive platform for collecting data in different domains such as walking, cognition, vision, quality of life, demographics, MRI imaging and genetics. And because the app can be used on any smartphone, anywhere, it breaks down some of the geographic barriers encountered in traditional research.

"We have so much to discover about MS, and our traditional methods of studying it are not going fast enough," Pelletier says. "Each incremental finding is like one drop of water in the ocean. If we want to reach the point of individualized therapy for MS, we need a massive amount of data, which is what inspired me to think of a solution that was completely out of the box."

myMS app users will be able to monitor how they are doing through validated walking, cognitive and visual tasks, as well as quality of life questionnaires. An interactive dashboard will allow them to view and graph their results over time and compare them to other people. The app will also allow users to upload their brain MRIs and see them in high resolution within the app as well as access genetic information obtained through personal genetics company 23andMe.

Pelletier hopes the myMS app will give people with MS a chance to take control of their disease.

"Not only will people be able to see how they're doing in real time, but they will also be able to open new lines of communication with their doctors," Pelletier says. "When they see their doctor, they'll be able to open the app and show them how they're doing in their everyday life and not just in the clinic."

The pilot study's goals are to discover how willing people are to participate, how often they perform app-related tasks and how likely they are to share their MRI and genetic information.

Pelletier is recruiting 200 people nationwide for the study. Participants must have a diagnosis of MS, be 18 years of age or older, have a brain MRI, live in the United States and have a smartphone. No clinical visits will be involved.

Participants will be asked to complete six-minute walking tests, cognitive function tests, visual acuity tests and quality of life questions as well as baseline and follow-up surveys through the myMS app. From their home computers, participants will be able to transfer all their MRI scans to the app via a dedicated website. After three months, participants will be offered a free, optional 23andMe genetics kit with reports that meet U.S. Food and Drug Administration standards. Those who choose to use the kit will receive genetic reports containing information related to ancestry, personal traits and a variety of inherited conditions — all of which will appear within the myMS app.

"This study is just the beginning for myMS. Our ultimate goal is for the app to go viral so we can collect data from people around the world. It could be a powerful tool to get us closer to personalized medicine and breakthrough discoveries," Pelletier says.

More than 2.3 million people have MS worldwide, according to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

For information about how to participate in the study, click here.

ABOUT THE KECK SCHOOL OF MEDICINE OF USC
Founded in 1885, the Keck School of Medicine of USC is among the nation's leaders in innovative patient care, scientific discovery, education, and community service. It is part of Keck Medicine of USC, the University of Southern California's medical enterprise, one of only two university-owned academic medical centers in the Los Angeles area. This includes the Keck Medical Center of USC, composed of the Keck Hospital of USC and the USC Norris Cancer Hospital. The two world-class, USC-owned hospitals are staffed by more than 500 physicians who are faculty at the Keck School. The school today has approximately 1,650 full-time faculty members and voluntary faculty of more than 2,400 physicians. These faculty direct the education of approximately 700 medical students and 1,000 students pursuing graduate and post-graduate degrees. The school trains more than 900 resident physicians in more than 50 specialty or subspecialty programs and is the largest educator of physicians practicing in Southern California. Together, the school's faculty and residents serve more than 1.5 million patients each year at Keck Hospital of USC and USC Norris Cancer Hospital, as well as USC-affiliated hospitals Children's Hospital Los Angeles and Los Angeles County + USC Medical Center. Keck School faculty also conduct research and teach at several research centers and institutes, including the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, the Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute, the Eli and Edythe Broad Center for Stem Cell Research and Regenerative Medicine at USC, the USC Cardiovascular Thoracic Institute, the USC Roski Eye Institute and the USC Institute of Urology.

In 2017, U.S. News & World Report ranked Keck School of Medicine among the Top 40 medical schools in the country.

For more information, go to keck.usc.edu.

SOURCE Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California

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http://keck.usc.edu