The Rocky Mountain MS Center Clinic at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus (RMMSC at CU Anschutz) is home to one of the largest MS research programs in the world. This unique partnership has created a world-class center. The RMMSC at CU Anschutz leads the way in MS research by building the body of knowledge about MS and developing new and effective treatments advancing the march towards a cure.
Research in the last ten years has shown that atrophy — the loss of brain volume — is highly correlated with development of disability over time in MS. Therefore, the RMMSC at CU Anschutz has defined the maintenance of brain volume and maximizing lifelong brain health as one of our primary goals going forward.
In partnership with the basic science research team at CU Anschutz Medical Campus, a group of physicians and scientists are actively investigating how current therapies actually work in MS patients as a strategy to identify the key immunological processes that lead to neurological damage. This is supplemented by an effort to use this information to develop a vaccine approach to MS treatment that could also be used to prevent MS in children at high risk of MS.
We have made substantial progress in this research endeavor in the last two years. Indeed, just recently, the University of Colorado Technology Transfer Office filed for a patent on the MS vaccine. With the filing of the patent application, the vaccine project is now moving into the next stage to conduct further research to identify the optimal strategy to move into human trials. This research is central to the next step which is partnering with a pharmaceutical company that has the financial resources to actually undertake human trials. It is a lengthy process and it is still in the very preliminary stage, but is unique in the world where no other potentially curative therapies are in preparation for human trials.
We wanted to be sure to update you on this important milestone on MS Vaccine Research project. We will keep you posted as the process moves forward.
CLICK HERE to read more about the complexities of medical research in a past issue of InforMS, entitled “Exploring the Labrynth of Research.”