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(Washington, DC - February 25) The Lupus Foundation
of America (LFA) has launched a new initiative aimed at bringing
down the barriers that have obstructed progress on research into
lupus, an autoimmune disease that affects the lives of an estimated
1.5 million Americans. The Five-Year Research Support Program seeks
to advance biomedical, clinical, epidemiological, behavioral and
translational research that will lead to safe and more effective
treatments for lupus and a cure for the disease.
“Without the ability to conduct meaningful clinical trials,
the pharmaceutical industry and the federal government have not
been fully engaged in searching for the causes and cure for lupus,”
said Sandra C. Raymond, President and Chief Executive Officer of
the Lupus Foundation of America, the nations leading nonprofit voluntary
health agency dedicated solely to lupus. “The fact that there
have been no new drug therapies for lupus in thirty years underscores
the need to address and answer the questions that have impeded the
forward progress of clinical trials and the development of new medications
to treat lupus.”
Approved recently by the LFA's Board of Directors, the Five-Year
Research Support Program will help to accelerate the pace of medical
discovery in lupus with a goal of making clinical trials more feasible.
“Our goal is to encourage pharmaceutical and biotechnology
companies to make substantive investments to find the cause and
cure for lupus, said Joan Merrill, M.D., LFA's Medical Director.
“We need to address the gaps in understanding of the incidence
and prevalence of lupus to heighten public and private sector interest
and investment in lupus, and stimulate new approaches to the diagnosis
and treatment of the disease.”
The LFA will immediately issue two Requests for Applications (RFA's)
focusing on the epidemiology of lupus. For more information, please
visit the following page on the LFA website: www.lupus.org/research/five-year.html.
The new five-year initiative will complement LFA's on-going efforts
to stimulate greater public and private support of research on lupus.
“The LFA will continue and expand its year-round federal and
grassroots advocacy efforts to support increases in congressional
appropriations for research on lupus, and to influence a robust
national lupus research agenda,” said Christine Smith, Chair
of the LFA's Board of Directors. “In addition, we will continue
to support young scientists through our fellowship program and fulfill
the commitments that we already have made to support young investigators.”
Since its inception, the LFA has awarded 350 Young Investigator
research grants to researchers at 81 academic institutions throughout
the United States. Many of these researchers have gone on to receive
millions of dollars through the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
“The LFA will facilitate extensive collaborations between
the Congress, the NIH, and our nations leading pharmaceutical and
biotechnology companies to achieve the level of focus for lupus
research that is required to bring about a good qualify of life
for individuals with lupus,” said Raymond.
Lupus is a chronic disease that for unknown reasons causes the immune
system to mistakenly attack the body's own healthy cells. The disease
strikes mostly women in their childbearing years, with the highest
prevalence among women of color, especially African Americans, American
Indians, Alaska Natives, Hispanics and Asians. The disease causes
a host of debilitating symptoms and can eventually lead to tissue
damage, organ failure or death.
The Lupus Foundation of America was founded in 1977 and operates
a nationwide network of 200 local chapters, branches and support
groups. The LFA mission is to improve the diagnosis and treatment
of lupus, support individuals and families affected by the disease,
increase awareness of lupus among health professionals and the public,
and find the cause and cure. For more information about lupus and
the LFA, visit the LFA website at www.lupus.org.
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