As we near a new decade, many of us in the Parkinson’s world are looking to the future for some hope. Whether we are new to the disease or have been living with PD for many years, we all hope for new and more effective treatments in order to live better lives with the disease.
All of us continue to hope for a cure for Parkinson’s, but is that realistic? We believe it is!
Researchers are working hard to find a cure, and though they have not found one yet, they have made a lot of progress in understanding how the disease develops and behaves. The study of genes has been one of the leading targets for drugs that may stop or slow Parkinson’s and this could lead to some exciting developments in the near future!
Repurposing existing drugs already in use and using them to treat people with Parkinson’s has been another area of research. Drugs used to treat diabetes, high cholesterol and cancer are just a few examples of drugs being tested in clinical trials. This could be a very promising area for breakthroughs in PD treatment.
In addition to the many human and clinical trials being performed, technology continues to evolve, and many digital advancements have been made to help people with PD. Examples of devices that have been developed include smartwatches and smartphone apps that gather data to help measure PD progression, a wearable watch that helps ease tremors, a smartphone-based wearable system that delivers cues to treat freezing of gait, and a headset which delivers 2-D and 3-D cues for walking.
These are just a few examples of why we believe that, more than ever, we can be hopeful about living better lives with PD.
Parkinson’s isn’t just an English speaking disease either – it affects everyone. And to that end, it may bring you more hope to know that scientists from all over the world are working towards finding a cure.
If you have Parkinson’s and would like to be part of the drive toward a cure, you may want to consider being part of a study or joining a clinical trial. You can read more about the studies available in your area by going to www.michaeljfox.org/join-study.
Here’s to a hope-filled 2020 for all those affected by Parkinson’s.