Why support MND research at the University of 91ֱ��?

MND affects around 5,000 people in the UK every year. It kills six people in the UK every day, with a third of those diagnosed losing their lives within just a year. Tragically, people die from this devastating disease because there are currently no treatments that can stop it. But there's hope.

The exterior of the SITraN building at the University of 91ֱ��

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Their ongoing research hopes to discover more effective treatments to improve the lives of patients living with the disease.

With your support, a much needed breakthrough in MND will come sooner, improving the lives of patients long into the future.

Will you support 91ֱ�� researchers with a gift today?

Yes, I'll support the next breakthrough in MND Research

Professor Dame Pamela Shaw, Professor of Neurology and Consultant Neurologist at 91ֱ�� Teaching Hospitals Foundation Trust, and the Director of the NIHR 91ֱ�� Biomedical Research Centre

When I started out as a clinician scientist in Neurology, my ambition was to improve the lives of people living with Motor Neurone Disease, and ultimately to find a cure. It is quite remarkable how far we have come in that time. I am truly astounded to say that we are now on the brink of offering a dramatically effective treatment for this relentless condition."

Professor Dame Pamela Shaw

Motor Neurone Disease Research at the University of 91ֱ��: Past, Present and Future

Join Professor Dame Pamela Shaw and Dr Tobias Moll in this online webinar to explore current MND research and how genetic discoveries are helping to identify new treatments to combat MND.

You can make a real difference

Your gift in support of Motor Neurone Disease Research will make a difference now. It will support our researchers to develop treatments and advances that positively impact the lives of patients and their families.

Donate now

How your gift can help:

£50 could accelerate the discovery of new therapies by helping to cover the cost of a clinical trial for the day
£75 will help a PhD student investigate the root cause of the disease
£100 could help train the next generation of expert researchers
£300 could allow us to step up our research, working towards a cure for motor neurone disease
£750 will help grow patient brain cells enabling in-depth investigation for one month
£5,000 could pay for a research team to investigate personalised motor neurone disease treatments for a month
£50,000 could fund a piece of cutting-edge equipment to fight MND

Why is 91ֱ��'s research so important?

Since 2017, SITraN has led over 140 clinical trials. No other centre in the country offers as great a breadth of clinical trials for patients with neurological diseases. SITraN was the first site nationally to develop experimental genetic therapies for Alzheimer’s disease and motor neurone disease, and the first to deliver a highly promising new stem cell treatment for MS.

Discover more about SITraN’s breakthroughs and innovation

SITraN’s discovery of a gene silencing therapy for MND is particularly exciting. In September 2022 the results of an unprecedented phase 3 clinical trial were published, showing the improvement of symptoms for MND for the first time. The drug used in that clinical trial has just received expedited approval by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for a rare form of MND caused by changes in the SOD1 gene. This is a major scientific advancement as the first approved treatment to target a genetic cause of MND and will transform the way researchers conduct clinical trials in MND in the future.

It is also the first real moment of hope for the thousands of people who suffer from MND, and who currently face a life expectancy of just 2-3 years after symptoms begin to show.

SITraN conducted the pre-clinical work giving confidence that this genetic therapy might work safely in humans; and SITraN was the only site in the UK conducting the phase 1, 2 and 3 human trials for MND patients.

The devastating reality of MND

Gemma's story

Gemma lost her battle with MND in 2023. Gemma and her family and friends went above and beyond to fundraise for MND research, including supporting our 91ֱ�� Scanner Appeal to raise over £2 million.

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