(The Center Square) – The most recent Pennsylvania budget was tight, but it did add a few new line items, including $5 million toward research for neurodegenerative diseases like ALS, Parkinson\u2019s, and Alzheimer\u2019s.<\/p>\n
On Friday, Gov. Josh Shapiro, Secretary of Health Dr. Debra Bogen, and Rep. Kyle Mullins, D-Peckville, joined researchers at the University of Pittsburgh to mark the investment.<\/p>\n
Mullins lost his father to ALS and has spent his time in the legislature championing the cause alongside Rep. Bryan Cutler, R-Quarryville, who lost both parents to the disease.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo many know the feeling of when that diagnosis is given,\u201d said Mullins. \u201cThe timer is set, and you begin to grieve in anticipation of losing that person you love. As you watch them lose the ability to speak, to swallow, to remember your name, or to breathe, you prepare for that loss because there are no cures.\u201d<\/p>\n
Medical researchers in Pennsylvania hope to rewrite that story by developing new treatments for neurodegenerative diseases. In a state with a huge and growing population of seniors, the issue is particularly pressing.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe numbers tell an urgent story,\u201d said Bogen. \u201cNationally, more than seven million Americans live with Alzheimer’s, a figure projected to nearly double by 2050. Here in Pennsylvania, this Public Health crisis hits close to home. Over 280,000 of our neighbors aged 65 and older are currently living with Alzheimer’s. This is a large city of people, each facing a devastating progressive decline.\u201d<\/p>\n
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine Dean Dr. Anantha Shekhar said he recently co-chaired a National Academy of Medicine panel on the development of treatments for ALS. He said for him, one of the hardest parts is the difficulty diagnosing the disease. For most patients, the disease isn\u2019t genetic, and there is no one-size-fits-all therapy.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese are not simple solutions,\u201d said Shekhar. \u201cWe are actually growing people’s neurons from their skin or from other cells, and then trying to understand what is wrong with those neurons for that patient and then trying to figure out how to come up with the treatment.\u201d<\/p>\n
The university has positioned itself to streamline the path between initial academic research, innovation in the private sector, and delivery to patients. He pointed to the wide network of patients served by UPMC across the state. Those patients are at once test subjects and the recipients of hope that was not available to those receiving diagnoses in the recent past.<\/p>\n