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Multiple Sclerosis Society increases
research support by 60 percent during 50th Anniversary year
(TORONTO) -- The Multiple
Sclerosis Society of Canada has increased its support of MS
research by more than 60 percent over last year and is initiating
two new research programs in 1998, the 50th year of the organization's
founding, announced Sarah E. Pepall, national chair of the MS
Society.
The MS Society is funding an additional $2.9
million in MS research over the next three years, the largest
allocation the Society has ever made. This amount is on top
of existing research commitments. The funds will support 15
research projects, nine post doctoral fellowships and 18 studentships
at universities and hospitals across the country. In 1997, the
MS Society allocated $1.8 million to 11 multi-year research
projects and a number of fellowships and studentships.
"We recognize that this research commitment
is a challenge for our fund raising endeavours, but it is one
which must be met. Our Medical Advisory Committee strongly recommended
that the MS Society fund all of the projects that had been judged
excellent after rigorous national and international peer review,"
Ms. Pepall said.
In addition, the Multiple Sclerosis Society
has launched two new research initiatives. The Health Research
Program will fund projects that deal with research into broader
health issues that affect people with MS such as quality of
life and the economic cost of MS. While the MS Society has supported
health research in the past, this is the first time that a separate
program and review committee have been established. The second
program is a Pilot Research Program. The program provides limited
start-up funds for innovative approaches to MS research where
preliminary data is not sufficient to allow the investigator
to apply to the regular research program. Investigators can
apply for pilot research
funding anytime throughout the year, unlike
the regular program which accepts proposals once a year. Funding
for the Pilot Research Program is from the MS Scientific Research
Foundation, which is related to the MS Society of Canada.
The MS Society of Canada also supported the
recent and successful effort to convince the federal government
to increase funding to the Medical Research Council of Canada.
"Organizations such as the Multiple
Sclerosis Society rely on the MRC to fund underlying basic research
while the MS Society dedicates its research dollar to projects
that are focussed on finding the cause, prevention and effective
treatments for this often disabling disease," Ms. Pepall
added.
Almost 40 percent of MS Society supported
research are projects investigating methods to stimulate the
body to regrow myelin, the protective covering of the central
nervous system that is damaged by MS attacks.
Nearly 28 percent of the research projects
are immune system studies looking at ways to block the immune
attack on myelin and to understand what triggers the immune
system to damage the body's own tissues.
Other research projects are trying to establish
if MS might be initiated by one or several common viruses, identifying
genetic susceptibility factors and refining the use of magnetic
resonance imaging (MRI) in evaluating potentially useful MS
therapies.
An estimated 50,000 Canadians have multiple
sclerosis, an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the
central nervous system. Canada is a high risk area for the disease,
which most often strikes young adults between the ages of 20
and 40.
The Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada
was founded in 1948. For 50 years, the Society has supported
more MS research than any other voluntary organization in the
country and provided services and programs for people with MS
and family members.
Disclaimer
The Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada is an independent,
voluntary health agency and does not approve, endorse or recommend
any specific product or therapy but provides information to
assist individuals in making their own decisions.
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