‘It’s not incurable...it’s underfunded’
WHEN I joined MND Scotland last month I was shocked to find out how little investment is currently given to this debilitating and utterly devastating disease.
People like Jo show us this disease could happen to anyone, at any time in their life. MND does not discriminate and it has robbed Jo of the future she saw for herself.
This really brings home the cruel impact this illness has on the 5,000 families across the UK currently living with MND and the many more that will be affected in the years to come.
Since joining the MND community in my new role, I have been truly touched by the incredible support MND Scotland receives from communities across the country to further this cause.
But it shouldn’t just be down to people living with MND, and their friends and families, to raise the funds needed to find a cure.
In 2018, MND Scotland funded the first MND clinical drug trial in Scotland in over 20 years.
In January 2020, thanks to a £1.5million investment from the charity, the biggest ever MND clinical trial in the UK was launched.
This shows the extraordinary progress that can be made within a few years if funds are invested.
Just think what £50million over five years could do to accelerate research into
MND. That’s why we have joined forces with MND Association, My Name’5 Doddie Foundation, people with
MND, clinicians, researchers and industry, to drive our United to End MND campaign forward.
Together, we have a real chance to make significant and meaningful progress in research, but we cannot do it alone.
It’s fantastic to have the backing of the Sunday Express to make sure we keep this important issue front of mind, and drive home the importance of continuing to invest in targeted MND research. Now we need the UK Government to join us too.
With Government support we could establish and support a virtual MND Research Institute to focus on creating a world-leading drug discovery and development programme, developing a sustainable MND trials platform and implementing a rigorous clinical research programme.
MND is not incurable, it’s just underfunded and people with MND do not have time to wait.
We need the UK Government to unite with us so we can see effective treatments being developed in the next five to 10 years.