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West of Scotland Research Interest Group
Connecting the Parkinson's community through research
A Message from Colin Williams, chair of the West of Scotland Research Interest Group
It is a difficult time of year for many of us. The pandemic, Ukraine, cost of living and energy costs soaring ..........it would be easy to give up hope.
Most articles about Parkinson’s stress that there is no cure yet... We all long for the big break through in the development of new treatments and a cure for Parkinson’s, but this shouldn't detract us from acknowledging the significant initiatives and the substantial sums of money being pledged now.
Parkinson’s UK’s recent publication of the current research projects they're currently funding is inspirational! Thousands of committed skilled people are working flat out to develop new drug and non-drug therapies to combat the disease or slow down the speed of its development. Thousands of volunteers provide a magnificent depth of knowledge and experience and give their time to participate in trials themselves.
You can download this document from the Parkinson's UK website: https://www.parkinsons.org.uk/research/our research-projects
And you can search for research to take part in now, on the Parkinson's UK website: https://www.parkinsons.org.uk/research/take-part-research
It was particularly uplifting to read about the astonishing initiative over several years by Dr Kevin McFarthing, a dedicated volunteer who is re-writing the literature on current trials in an easy to understand format. This enables us all to gain a clearer understanding of the research projects and their impact - what a brilliant idea it is.
You can read about Kevin's work and The Hope List online here: https://medium.com/parkinsons-uk/whats-going-on-withresearch-into-parkinson-s-390b446f0559
To you all thanks for the contribution you make to the organisation - we are a big family. The scientific community is aware of the knowledge commitment and willingness of our members to contribute to a greater understanding of Parkinson’s and how we can move forward to more success in its treatment, and eventual cure.