ME/CFS South Australia Inc supports the needs of sufferers of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and related illnesses. We do this by providing services and information to members. Disclaimer ME/CFS South Australia Inc aims to keep members informed of various research projects, diets, medications, therapies, news items, etc. All communication, both verbal and written, is merely to disseminate information and not to make recommendations or directives. Unless otherwise stated, the views expressed on this Web site are not necessarily the official views of the Society or its Committee and are not simply an endorsement of products or services. |
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The NIH Is Thwarting Research On A Poorly Understood Yet Serious ConditionTuesday 29 January 2019
The NIH is thwarting research on a poorly understood yet serious condition When I first developed myalgic encephalomyelitis in 1994, I had no idea that I would be just as sick 25 years later, or that there would still be limited scientific understanding of the disease and no effective treatments. Nor did I imagine that my career as a lawyer was over, and that I would instead become an advocate for myself and others with ME (sometimes misleadingly called chronic fatigue syndrome, and referred to as ME/CFS by U.S. federal agencies). An estimated 1 million Americans with this condition have been living for decades in the crisis mode of disability and lack of treatment. We have repeatedly pressed the National Institutes of Health to address the problem by increasing research funding; one ME/CFS organization even met with NIH Director Francis Collins in December 2018 to make that point. The response from the NIH is always the same: Researchers should submit more high-quality grant applications. On the surface, this sounds reasonable. From documents a colleague and I obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, I calculated that between 2011 and 2016 the NIH funded 25 percent of ME/CFS grant applications, a higher acceptance rate than the average for all grants. It seems obvious, then, that more applications would yield more funding. But it’s not that simple: Despite growing interest in ME/CFS, NIH grant applications to study the disease have dwindled since 2015. Why? The NIH has erected an obstacle course for those wanting to do research on this disease. I see at least five obstacles that scientists must navigate on the path to funding.
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