People living with neurodegenerative diseases could live longer,
healthier lives due to innovative new research, following a
government commitment to invest £375 million over the next 5
years.
At least £50 million will be made available specifically for
research to help find a cure for motor neurone disease (MND) - a
condition that affects the brain and nerves and affects 5,000
people in the UK. New, innovative projects will help researchers
to better understand the disease and its related conditions,
develop and test treatments and improve care for those living
with MND.
The full £375 million investment will fund projects into a range
of diseases such as Pick's Disease, Fronto-temporal dementia,
wernicke-korsakoff, Parkinson's disease dementia, Lewy Body
dementia, Alzheimer's disease and mild cognitive impairment,
improving our understanding while searching for new treatments.
For MND, a new NIHR Research Unit will be set up to
coordinate research applications for the new funding, encouraging
more innovative studies with the ultimate goal of finding a cure.
The government has already invested millions of pounds in MND
research, including over £7 million to support pioneering
clinical trials, which have led to major advances in how the
disease is understood. This includes improving our understanding
of how different types of MND are passed on genetically which
could unlock new treatment options for patients using gene
therapy.
There is currently only one drug licensed in the UK to treat MND
– Riluzole – which slows the progression of the disease and
extends someone's life by a few months. The funding announced
today will accelerate progress across the UK to find better
treatments for MND, and give people living with the condition the
chance of a better quality of life, and more good years with
their loved ones.
Health and Social Care Secretary, , said:
“Neurodegenerative conditions like MND can have a devastating
impact on people’s lives and I’m committed to ensuring the
government does everything we can to fight these diseases and
support those affected.
“We’ve already invested millions in understanding and treating
MND and our new funding commitment will back more research into
this and other neurodegenerative diseases.
“The UK is a global leader in medical research. Our world-class
research sector was central to the discovery of lifesaving
treatments for COVID-19 like dexamethasone and Tocilizumab, as
well as the development of the vaccine programme which has saved
hundreds of thousands of lives.
“We will continue to harness this expertise and innovation to
support pioneering projects to find better treatments for those
living with motor neurone disease, like the excellent work
underway at NIHR Sheffield Biomedical Research Centre where
scientists are trialling new drugs to treat the condition.”
Business Secretary said:
“The UK is home to some of the most transformative and innovative
medical research in the world, and the availability of this
research funding, alongside the work of our strong life science
and pharmaceuticals sector, will make the most of that research
to help those living with motorneurone disease.
“It is vital that we increase our understanding of this condition
in pursuit of new treatments and better care, and I am pleased to
see UK institutions at the forefront of that work”
The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) has committed
to ongoing research into MND, reinforced by issuing a Highlight Notice
inviting applications from ambitious research projects to take
potential treatments from the lab to the clinic, as part of
scaled-up efforts to significantly improve the care and support
available.
The NIHR has also awarded a prestigious Research Professorship to
leading motor neurone disease researcher Professor Chris
McDermott. The award will focus on improving care for people with
MND, bolstering leadership in this area of research, and
strengthening the design of clinical trials to help more people
with the disease take part.
While there is still work to be done, significant progress is
already being made – including through the development of better
data resources such as MND Register and MND Biobanks which
support researchers working to better understand the
disease.
Improved data sets make it easier for scientists to monitor
responses to treatment in clinical trials. And through innovative
and flexible trial designs, researchers are able to conduct
faster and cheaper trials which will deliver potential new
treatments to patients more quickly.
As well as the funding for research into neurodegenerative
diseases, a new motor neurone disease partnership will be formed
to pool expertise and resources across the research community to
accelerate the delivery of new treatments. The partnership,
backed by £4 million, is co-funded by the National Institute for
Health Research, UK Research and Innovation, Life Arc, MND
Association and My Name’5 Doddie Foundation.
Researchers can apply for funding via the NIHR and UKRI websites.
