This Is MS Multiple Sclerosis Knowledge & Support Community

Dear all (especially GWA),

Happy New Year.

Crystal ball stuff from a leading Canadian MS researcher (for those who don't think that there will be better treatments in the future - no need to read on or comment).

http://www.msanswers.ca/QuestionView.aspx?L=2&QID=381

Ian

Two thumbs up from this old gal, bromley.

Thanks.

gwa

Good morning...read your reference. Am interested in ANYTHING that may be positive for MSers. I have only one problem however...the add for "Biogen".

I love encouraging news. I hope that I am in the right track already (just my own fantasy

Thanks,

It is nice to hear some encouragement, especially regarding myelin repair. I wish the timetable was shorter, but we have seen what happens with the rush to market in the past.

Anything has to be better than the Rebif crap that I am on now, so I hope and pray for a better option to come soon!

Grumpy

Hi Broms
I missed you lots. Thanx for this. I will read it again again to make me happy when the "hope taker aways" get me down. We won't mention names. So not all ppl in this world are evil? Who would have guessed?
NN

So not all ppl in this world are evil

need to think about this comment for a while thought the ms was the evil not the person but i was wrong...

my skin is crawling because of what i just read, how does a person with ms for 14 years not feel comfortable at a site for ms but i guess things have changed. opinions on anything are meant to be different and if what people say can affect your beliefs then they can't be very strong to begin with. i really don't know what to say but your evil isn't one of them!!

becca,
It could be that I just did a 8 hr day shift and then went home only to go back to work all night, but I just have no idea what you are talking about. I think you are annoyed at my comments? I am not sure why...but ok. I am just saying that there is a lot of work going on to find a cure and that not everyone out there is out to get our money. I am saying that there ARE nice ppl in this world who do care and are doing real good work to make us better. I am not sure what you are upset about.
NN

Thanks for the posting Ian. I ALWAYS like reading that kind of thing.

It's obvious from the responses to this post and others like it that different people have different expectations of what "reasons for optomism" might be.

My wife was recently diagnosed and so far her MS has shown to be very mild. We would be estatic to find a treatment without short or long term side effects which would stop MS in it's tracks. That would define our "reasons for optomism". Although leaving people with disability, I think our definition would be similar to 80% of the people haunting this site.

On the other hand, there are people with more significant disability and/or a more progressive form of MS who, of course would like to see the disease stopped, but find that living the rest of their life with their current degree of disability isn't acceptible. If I were in their shoes I would feel the same.

I think we all are aware that, when it's within our means, it's easiest to stop something bad before it starts....nip it in the bud. It's harder to stop something once the wheels are in motion and hardest of all is trying to repair something once the damage has been done. This is true with most things in life and absolutely true with the MS process.

How that relates to the current disagreement in "reasons for optomism" is that we are seeing good...I think obvious reasons to believe that the MS disease progress can be stopped soon, rather has been stopped in clinical trials and hopefully will reach the huddled masses soon.

What we haven't seen are good, clear signs that we are going to be able to help neuroregeneration along in the near future and THAT IS what some of these people want/need and regard as "reasons for optomism" and in that regard, although constant harping about the dishonesty of the drug companies isn't doing anyone any good, I can relate to their reasons that they don't share our optomism.

Sadly, other than doing my best to do my best to understand what it would be like if roles were reversed, I don't know how to handle the situation.

Bob

As MS continues to claim an increasing number of victims from the wealthier, developed parts of our globe people are sitting up, taking notice and beginning to try and find answers and solutions. Personally, I want them to keep looking and trying even if there are a few disappointments along the way.
muu

Hi muu,
What you are talking about is already happening to a larger and larger degree and the we're already seeing the results in the variety of research being done.

For so long MS was only considered and research only involved the final steps of a long process, the permiable bbb, inflammation, lesions, axon loss and brain atrophy and that was as it had to be. There was only so much money, so many researchers and those were/are the immediate problem.

There are still researchers working on those problems but there are also researchers working their way back in the immune system trying to determine where the "bud" is so that they can "nip MS in the bud" rather than trying to put out the fire after it's had the chance to burn the house down.

As you mentioned, the increasing rates of autoimmune diseases have already been noticed and I think you're going to see it more and more in the news as third world or "undeveloped" countries do more business with the West and use that income to "develop". In those areas the vast living condition differences between rich and poor are going to be an excellent learning experience for MS researchers.

Bob