Take Comfort in Research
I take comfort in the number of people focused on finding new treatments for multiple sclerosis. All you need to do is take a look at the list of currently funded research by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, or the list of clinical trials from the National Institutes of Health to get a sense of the amount of research currently happening.
Then, there is the private funding from drug companies which have an interest in bringing new therapies to market. I hear a lot about drug companies gouging consumers. I think there needs to be a balance. Drug companies deserve to make a profit on their drugs. It's important to remember that for every one drug that pops, there could have been hundreds of others which flopped - the companies need to be able to recoup those costs. At the same time, they also need to be responsible in their pricing structure because of the nature of their business.
Every single day we learn more about the disease. And research is focused on so many different aspects of the disease. I like to think of it as a puzzle with many different pieces. As we learn more about each aspect, we put one more piece in place. I'm confident this puzzle will be solved in my lifetime.
This research is important to anyone affected by MS - whether it's yourself or a loved one. It should be a very high priority for each of us to make sure this research continues. I encourage everyone to become educated about the current research. It not only gives you knowledge you can use to confront the disease; it also can give you comfort knowing there are that many people and that much money dedicated to ending multiple sclerosis.