One goal of the MSplus Foundation is to educate its members and the public about research on multiple sclerosis. The following articles feature some of the work being conducted.

Wisconsin Researchers Show that Thinly Repaired Myelin Sheaths Restore Nerve Function and Persist for Years

Myelin sheaths that encase nerve fibers are vital to nerve function and health. Finding ways to enhance the body’s ability to repair myelin that has been damaged by the MS disease process is a priority for restoring function. [More]
 

The day before Thanksgiving in November of 1999, I woke up with my right side temporarily paralyzed.  Thinking I had a stroke, my family doctor got me in that day.  After an examination, he made an appointment for me to be seen by a neurologist the following Monday. [More]
 

Since its first broadcast in 1999, MS Learn Online, the National MS Society's Internet program, has been a successful way to educate about multiple sclerosis. View pre-recorded webcasts to learn more about MS from the convenience of your own home. Programs cover a wide variety of topics such as information for people newly diagnosed, MS basic facts, symptom management, employment, intimacy, care-partners, and progressive MS.

Each program may include:

This useful resource contains detailed information about the logistics of planning accessible travel by plane, train, bus and ship.

The ACAA and Air Travel
Protecting Your Wheelchair
Traveling With Oxygen
How To Advocate For Yourself
Cruising
Finding A Travel Agent - Do You Even Need One?
Accessible Ground Transportation Tips
Accessible Recreation Options
Budget Travel
Finding An Accessible Room

Click here to order paperback or eBook.

Vicki Kowal, a Nationally Certified Counselor and a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in the State of New Mexico, gave a detailed overview and detailed overview on the September MS/Cancer conference call of how multiple sclerosis(MS) treatments have advanced in the last 11 years. 

Her career at the National MS Society began in 2007 as an Information Resource Center (IRC) Specialist, which is known now as a MS Navigator. She is currently a Healthcare Provider Engagement Manager for New Mexico, West Texas, and Southwestern Colorado. Previously, Kowal worked 11 years at the MS Society and is proud of the organizations’ life-changing services for people with MS and their loved ones: MS Research, MS Navigator, MS Support Programs, MS Healthcare, and MS Activism.

Margaret Barney, MS/Cancer Support Group Leader and Executive Director of the MSplus Foundation, said, “One of the most significant topics of Kowal’s talk was that the definition for MS has changed. I found this fascinating, as I was unaware of the new focus.”

Kowal said the previous definition was that MS is an autoimmune disease where the body attacks the central nervous system." [More]
 

In May 2017, MS/Cancer members learned about three studies conducted on patients with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) to help its members stay current on MS research.

These stories are from the National MS Society website and links are provided after each study.

Study Finds That Cognitive Function in People with MS Improves with an Online Active Cognitive Training Program

May 22, 2017

Summary

·      In a trial funded by the National MS Society, researchers found that a special online active cognitive training program improved cognitive function in people with MS.

·      Participants included 135 people with any type of MS who were experiencing some cognitive problems. They used the training program for 60 hours over 12 weeks, in their own homes.

·      This was the largest, controlled trial that has tested a brain training program in people with MS. Future studies will help make clear what types of training will have the best results, who will respond most successfully, and how long benefits last.

·      The team (Leigh Charvet, PhD, Lauren Krupp, MD, and colleagues, now at NYU School of Medicine) published their findings in the open-access journal PLOS One on May 11, 2017. 

Background: Cognitive problems are common in people with MS. Among the cognitive functions that may be affected are the ability to learn and remember information, to process information quickly, and to organize, plan, and problem-solve.

Up to now there has not been an adequate treatment that successfully meets the goal of improving the speed and accuracy of information processing to improve performance in real-world situations. [More]
 

In our continuing effort to share pertinent news about MS, the MS/Cancer Support Group featured this story during our February 2016 members’ monthly conference call.

This story was published on the National MS Society website on December 22, 2016, and can be found at www.nationalmssociety.org/About-the-Society/News/Detailed-Clinical-Trial-Results-Published-On-Ocrel.

Summary

Results from three clinical trials of the experimental therapy ocrelizumab have been published, showing benefits in people with PPMS and RRMS and providing additional details regarding effectiveness and safety, after preliminary findings were reported at medical conferences.

The trial in primary progressive MS is the first large-scale clinical trial to show positive results in people with PPMS. The studies were published in two papers in the December 21, 2016 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine: “Ocrelizumab versus Placebo in Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis” (Dr. Xavier Montalban and others); “Ocrelizumab versus Interferon Beta-1a in Relapsing Multiple Sclerosis” (Dr. Stephen Hauser and others).

Regulatory agencies are now evaluating these results. The U.S. [More]
 

Summary: In a small-scale, early-phase trial of the hormone estriol, a form of estrogen, women with relapsing-remitting MS showed decreases in MRI-detected brain lesion activity and immune responses during treatment, suggesting that additional study of estriol is called for to determine longer-term efficacy and safety.

• Women who have MS and are pregnant often experience fewer MS symptoms and relapses, especially during the second and third trimester. Because the hormone estriol is elevated during later stages of pregnancy, and mice given pregnancy levels of estriol were shown to have fewer symptoms of an MS-like disease, the hormone was considered as a candidate for testing against MS.
• Estriol was well tolerated. Six women with relapsing-remitting MS experienced significant decreases in brain lesion numbers and volume, as well as reductions in levels of immune proteins indicative of inflammation.