RealTalk MS

My guest on this week's podcast is Dr. Aaron Boster, the system Medical Chief for Neuroimmunology at OhioHealth, and we're going to be talking about a really exciting wellness initiative that OhioHealth is undertaking for people living with MS and other neurological conditions. We'll also be discussing how and why OhioHealth finds itself leading the rest of the world when it comes to innovative treatment initiatives for people living with MS.

iConquer MS is a people-powered research network created by the Accelerated Cure Project for MS. Driven by people living with MS, it represents a new paradigm of building collaborative partnerships to solve big healthcare questions. We're revisiting a conversation I had this past spring with Dr. Robert McBurney, CEO of the Accelerated Cure Project for MS, and David Gwynne, who heads up their Alliances & Collaborations. And I'll also give you my thoughts on the remarkable iConquer MS Leadership Summit.

My guest is Mitch Sturgeon, author of, "Enjoying the Ride: Two Generations of Tragedy and Triumph." In 2001, Mitch was diagnosed with Primary Progressive MS. but his book is more than just a reflection of his MS journey. It's a story about a family with all of the quirks, idiosyncrasies, strengths, and faults that any family might have...and how they lived through and even prospered, in the face of tragic circumstances.

MS Research Australia has published a report titled, "Health Economic Impact of Multiple Sclerosis in Australia 2017". The report provides a detailed snapshot of the economics behind MS, and concludes with some powerful recommendations for future steps. My guest is Dr. Lisa Melton, Head of Research at MS Research Australia, and we're talking about what this report is telling us, what it's recommending, and how we transition those recommendations into actionable steps.

MS can impact your physical well-being, your emotional well-being, your functional abilities and your quality of life. That's why the best approach to treating MS is a team approach. My guest is Dr. Jacqueline Nicholas, a clinical neuroimmunologist specializing in MS at OhioHealth in Columbus, OH. OhioHealth operates an MS comprehensive care center that uses this interdisciplinary team approach to provide personalized treatment that's based upon each patient's specific needs.

Shawn Feliciano was diagnosed with MS in 2009, and in 2012, she decided to challenge herself while raising awareness about MS by going on a "Big Hike" --  hiking 817 miles, from Utah to Arizona. Shawn's "Big Hike" may have been the perfect metaphor for living with the challenges of MS, and we're talking about having the resilience to take on a challenge, no matter what your personal "Big Hike" might be.

Elizabeth Jameson is an artist who specializes in creating a bridge between art and neuroscience. Since being diagnosed with MS, Elizabeth has transformed her brain MRI scans into remarkable and provocative images that challenge how we view the brain, disability, and illness.  We're standing at the intersection of art & science with my special guest, Elizabeth Jameson, talking about being an ePatient, embracing our imperfect bodies, and the importance of developing a narrative about living with MS.

You've heard the statistic before -- 50% of the people living with MS will be diagnosed with depression. And research has shown us that some of the most troubling MS symptoms, including fatigue, cognition, and even physical disability, are all made worse by depression. My guest is Peta Slocombe the Senior V.P. of Corporate Health at mental health technology company, Medibio. We're talking about how Medibio's game-changing technology can improve the quality of life for people living with MS.

We take advantage of digital tools every day to make our lives easier. But when it comes to managing our health, there's still a long way to go. That's why the MS Society in the UK commissioned a report titled "Improving Care for People with MS: The Potential of Data & Technology". That report has just been published, and we're discussing some of the observations and recommendations contained in this remarkable report with my special guest, Michelle Mitchell, the CEO of the MS Society in the UK.

The caregiver's journey doesn't always get paid the proper amount of attention until a family caregiver finds themselves feeling isolated, overwhelmed, drained, and depressed. But it doesn't have to come to that. My guest is Dr. Kate Lorig, lead author of "Building Better Caregivers: A Family Caregiver's Guide to Reducing Stress and Staying Healthy". And we're talking about how to go about building better caregivers.

My guest this week is Dr. Rhonda Voskuhl, the Director of the Multiple Sclerosis Program at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and the Jack H. Skirball professor of Multiple Sclerosis Research. Dr. Voskuhl is responsible for first identifying that understanding the gender differences in the disease is an important part of understanding MS. This is one of my favorite interviews, and it's packed with great information.

Using cannabis to treat MS symptoms has become a hot topic. And thanks to social media, a lot of opinions about cannabis and MS are posted as if they're facts...and that's not always the case. So, we're talking about cannabis and MS in this episode of RealTalk MS. We'll try to demystify it a bit and we'll give you an idea of what some of the research is telling us. We'll talk about which MS symptoms cannabis might be good for...and which ones it might not be good for.

When you google the phrase "stem cell therapy for MS", it can feel like you fell into a black hole of conflicting information, misinformation, and dodgy information. And there's also plenty of good, credible information available online. But how do you go about separating the wheat from the chaff? We're going to try to jump start that process for you in this podcast episode, as we look at the current state of stem cell therapy & MS.

How and why does someone become an "MS investigator"? My guest is Dr. Elisabeth Mari, Director of Biomedical Research for the National MS Society. Dr. Mari walks us through the process of how someone becomes  an MS research fellow. Then, we'll talk to 3 MS research fellows and you'll hear about the projects that they're working on, and what initially attracted them to doing MS research. We're also talking about new MS research, study outcomes, & clinical trial opportunities. We have a lot to talk about

MS Activist Marques Jones is running for public office in his home state of Virginia. Marques and I sat down to discuss how his role as an MS Activist led to his candidacy, and how his MS diagnosis has continued to inform his business life and his political life. We're also talking about the existential threat that now exists for people with pre-existing medical conditions in the U.S., how the MSAA can provide financial assistance for your MRI exam, and lots more!