< Connection Kills MS 7) Meredith Vieira and her husband, Richard Cohen, who lives with MS: “You’re not in this alone.” (NAPSA)—Multiple sclerosis (MS), a chronic, unpredictable disease of the central nervous system, is known for destroying connections, but making connections is helping to defeat this disease. MSdisrupts signals within the brain and between the brain and the rest of the body. This disruption results in symptoms ranging from reduced mobility, to numbness and tingling, to cognition issues and abnormal fatigue, to blindness andparalysis. While MS kills connection, con- nection can also kill MS. That’s why the National MS Society created the “ < Connection Kills MS” campaign: to forge connections among people with MS, people who treat those with MS and people who search for answersto create a world free of MS. Such connections have helped move MS inless than two decades from being an untreatable disease to one for which there are at least eight treatment options for those with relapsing MS, the most common form of the disease. And there are now even more new therapies speeding through the pipeline that offer hope to people with all formsof the disease. This effort to connect those who want to stop MS, restore nerve function damaged by MS and end the disease for all time is already leading to distinct victories: The International MS Genetics Consortium has discovered new MSrisk genes; An international nervous system repair and protection initiative has led to one of the first adult stem cell clinical trials; Cross-organizational collaboration is being fostered through the MS Coalition and the Emerging Therapies Collaborative; The first worldwide Societysponsored research initiative to find effective ways of treating progressive MSis under way; New and creative platforms to bring together top scientists are advancing research in the link between vitamin D and MS, in pediatric MS, and in quality-of-life strategies to improve long-term disease management outcomes. To help foster connections amongall those currently affected by MS or who maybeaffected in the future, the Society has introduced a multichannel public education campaign stressing the theme: “ < Connection Kills MS.” Meredith Vieira is featured in this campaign along with her husband, Richard Cohen, who has MS. “You’re not in this alone,” she said. “We’re all in this boat.” Cohen added, “I deny the certainty of possible outcomes. It really frees you up.” To connect and help stop MS from shutting people down, you can visit www.MSconnection.org.
