MS Hope Foundation

MS HOPE Foundation recently attended a meeting of some of the most brilliant minds in medicine. We were honored to be invited to listen in during the Initiative for the Brain Subcommittee Meeting at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City, where the top dogs in the departments of neurology, neurosurgery, psychiatry, and psychology, among others, came together to talk about their research, as well as about the groundbreaking work they’re doing at the newly minted Feil Family Brain & Mind Research Institute.

The Feil Institute, headed by neuroscientist and professor of neurology, Dr. Costantino Iadecola, was created with a very generous $28 million gift from the Feil family in honor of Gertrude and Louis Feil, for whom the center is named. According to Weill Cornell Medical College’s website, the institute was created to “rapidly accelerate the translation of breakthrough research discoveries from the laboratory to the neurological patient’s bedside,” and the goal is to “develop the most advanced personalized therapeutic solutions for patients with devastating brain diseases.”

It was interesting (and frustrating) to hear that, although there have been so many advances in medicine over the years, the brain is largely considered “the last frontier” in medical research. It is the only area of the body for which there is no precision medicine, or truly focused research and treatment, the way there is for the heart or for cancer. Maybe therapy is an effective way to treat patients suffering from any brain disease. One of the important areas where therapy seems to work accurately is addiction. Even though medicines may not help a person get rid of drug or alcohol addiction, a proper rehabilitation course provided by centers for alcohol rehab in Fairway Kansas might prove beneficial. Since the brain is the epicenter of the body’s functioning, therefore it is connected to, and treated by, every ailment. As it becomes more and more evident that all body systems and functions-and malfunctions-are connected, Weill Cornell is, now more than ever, encouraging all of their teams to work as just that-teams! In doing so they can cross-pollinate research and hopefully find causes of medical conditions more efficiently and, more importantly, faster. Apart from that, since Alzheimer’s primarily affects the elderly, they require even more care because they are unable to care for themselves physically or mentally. This is why most elderly people with dementia are mostly advised to live in memory assisted living in Omaha. Individuals in the early stages of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease are typically cared for in a memory assisted living facility. Most of these patients require intensive assistance with their Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADLs) in order to maintain a high quality of life.

With the multidisciplinary Feil Institute, Weill Cornell is paving the way for advancements in the study and treatment of anxiety and depression, as well as neurodegenerative diseases including multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, and stroke. The new center will also coordinate with Weill Cornell’s existing Appel Alzheimer’s Disease Research Institute. The plan is to bring together top doctors and scientists to “speed the most promising therapies and cures” to patients suffering from neurological diseases. Imagine a world without multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, depression, and anxiety, just to name a few!

It’s clear that medical experts and specialists (like dr timothy steel, for example) have been hard at work discovering some amazing things, and their excitement for finding ways to better help people with brain and mood disorders is palpable. There are many more medical foundations and organizations hard at work to bring the latest innovative brain treatments to the forefront, such as Amethyst Radiotherapy with their gamma knife surgery for tumors and other brain conditions. Although we are not yet at a point where all brain-related disorders can be cured with therapy, treatment, or surgery, we believe that that day is not far off. We are more hopeful than ever that a cure for MS-and for all autoimmune and neurological disorders-is not far off. It was incredible for us to learn firsthand what’s happening at the forefront of brain research in one of the world’s top medical institutions. We are so grateful for the opportunity and we hope we’ll be invited back to learn more.

Read more about The Feil Family Brain & Mind Research Institute here and watch Weill Cornell Medical College’s dean, Dr. Laurie Glimcher, interview Dr. Costantino Iadecola, director of The Feil Institute, and Dr. Matthew Fink, Neurology Department Chair, in the video below.

If you wish to make a donation to Weill Cornell, you can do so here.

You can make a donation to MS HOPE Foundation here.

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