The National MS Society's commitment to research
- Cumulative research funding in excess of $818 million by end of 2013
- $47.6 million to support over 350 research initiatives during 2013
Our funding has been critical in
- Creating tools/processes to quickly and accurately diagnose MS
- Developing most of the approved MS disease-modifying drugs
- Identifying genes that contribute to MS susceptibility
- Demonstrating a link between vitamin D and MS risk
- Recruiting, training, and retaining leading MS researchers making breakthroughs today
- Discovery of the potential for neural repair
- Getting more potential MS therapies in the pipeline than at any other time in history
Sweeping advances made in research during 2012
- The approval of a second oral therapy for relapsing forms of MS and other emerging treatments progressing through the development pipeline
- The launch of the International Progressive MS Collaborative, the largest effort to date to speed research to stop progressive forms of MS
- The discovery of what could be a target of the immune attack in people with MS may lead to new understanding of the disease and new treatment strategies
- The completion of the first human trial of an experimental therapy targeting myelin repair
- Progress in restoring functions using innovative rehabilitation techniques, including memory enhancement using a technique involving stories and imagery to solidify learning, and improving balance and mobility with specific exercises
- Advances in uncovering MS triggering factors, bringing us closer to finding ways to prevent the disease; and many other advances pushing us closer to a world free of MS
Our commitment moving foward
We are committed to freeing the world of MS. Our global support of MS research and treatment focuses on three key areas — STOPPING the progression of the disease, RESTORING function that’s been lost, and ENDING the disease forever. We will achieve this by pursuing all promising avenues; engaging the best and brightest minds; connecting people resources and ideas; speeding development of treatments; and identifying and filling gaps.
Our research focus through 2015
- We better understand the scientific mechanisms that lead to disease progression and accelerate therapy development.
- We pursue new avenues to discover how nerve cells are damaged and potentially repaired.
- We pursue new rehabilitation techniques and symptomatic treatments to restore neurological function and enhance quality of life.
- We identify risk and triggering factors that cause MS, and understand the biological interactions that lead to its development so that MS can be prevented.
- We expand and strengthen the quantity and quality of MS research worldwide to accelerate new discoveries and treatments for people with MS.
To learn more, visit nationalMSsociety.org/research.