World ALS Experts will Meet
In Dublin to Share Findings
November 28, 2005
By Gary Wosk, ALSA Staff Writer
One of the largest gatherings of experts in the field of ALS will meet in Dublin, Ireland for seven days in early December at a series of meetings organized by the Motor Neurone Disease Association to discuss the latest advances in the fields of ALS research, clinical trials and care giving.
The ALS Association’s Science Director, Dr. Lucie Bruijn, and ALSA’s Patient Services Vice President, Sharon Matland, will attend the weeklong conference.
“This annual ALS/MND Symposium is an excellent forum to learn more about the most recent developments of clinical and scientific advances in ALS. It provides a forum for networking and generating new project ideas and brings together the international community of ALS scientists,” Bruijn said.
At the 13th Annual Meeting of the International Alliance of ALS/MND Associations, December 4-6, ALS/MND associations from around the globe will share initiatives and develop strategies to fight ALS/MND (motor neurone disease, as the disease is referred to in other parts of the world). ALSA is a member of the Alliance.
The focus of the Allied Professional Forum, December 7, is on practice and experience for health professionals in the care and support of people living with ALS/MND. The Forum is a collaboration between the International Alliance and the Motor Neurone Disease Association, (MNDA).
Leading investigators in ALS and caregivers will converge on the major scientific meeting, the 16th annual “International Symposium on ALS/MND,” to announce their latest findings. ALS/MND affects more than 350,000 of the world’s population, and kills more than 100,000 every year. They will focus on recent initiatives that can potentially prolong and improve the quality of life, and how established theories on the causes of motor neuron dysfunction is combining with emerging avenues of therapeutic exploration.
During the Symposium, organized by the MNDA, based in Northampton, England, and hosted by the Irish Motor Neurone Disease Association in Dublin, Ireland, there will be a series of scientific and clinical workshops given by an elite group of researchers, healthcare professionals and clinical practitioners.
The Symposium is planned as two parallel meetings, one on biomedical science and the other on research and advances in the care and management of people affected by ALS/MND. Joint sessions consider issues of mutual concern, challenging current views and practice.
The ALSA Greater Philadelphia Chapter hosted the Symposium in 2004. Over the years, Symposiums have been held in such countries as England, France, Germany, Italy, Denmark and Australia.
Following the Symposium, the ALSA Research Department will prepare an overview of the concluded event and present it on the national ALSA website
at www.alsa.org.
For more information, visit www.alsmndalliance.org/meetings.html.
