We Are Advocates

Migraine and headache research - off to DC!

Not a single medication has ever been developed specifically for Migraine and headache prevention. Not one, yet we have seven triptans (acute medications used to abort Migraine attacks).

For quite some time, I didn't understand how or why that would be. Some people theorized that the pharmaceutical companies could "cure" Migraine disease, if they wanted to, but were making enough profit on medications such as triptans that they didn't want to produce the "cure." Although I can understand that line of thinking, that's not the case.

In a nutshell, I found that we owe our lack of effective treatments to lack of National Institutes of Health (NIH) research funding for Migraine disease and headache. Most disease research is funded by the NIH. Once that research is available, the pharmaceutical companies have a basis from which to develop treatments. That's why some people say that one medication and six "me-toos" - the triptans - have been developed for Migraine instead of multiple more unique medications.

Take a look at this excerpt from an editorial published in Headache: the Journal of  Head and Face Pain:

"Abundant evidence shows that the seminal studies that lead to innovative pharmaceuticals are most often performed in publicly-funded research laboratories, not those of the pharmaceutical industry. Federal funding of research on epilepsy has always hugely out-paced that for migraine. Over the past several years, mean annual NIH expenditures for epilepsy have been ~$101M compared to ~$13M for migraine, with a comparable disparity in funding every year since 1972 - the earliest year of available records for NIH grants.

What did the federal funding for epilepsy purchase? Fundamental research beginning in the 1970's led to the development of epilepsy animal models that enabled the screening of drugs for anti-convulsant properties. The NIH then funded and provided oversight of this program of accelerated screening of compounds developed by academia and industry. Thirty years later, patients with epilepsy have a considerably wider set of therapeutic options.

Headache medicine is also on the threshold of new insights into the pathogenesis of the primary headache disorders. Animal models relevant to drug screening are beginning to appear. What is needed now is a commitment to headache medicine from federal agencies similar to that which has been appropriately extended to epilepsy... Based on the example of the epilepsies, real benefits will likely be felt by headache patients over time in the form of improved access to specialty care and the development of novel effective therapies."(see link to the full editorial below)

Do I hear someone asking, "So, when is someone going to do something about this issue?"  The answer to that question is ... Now.

Allow me to lay it out for you with answers to the questions journalists are trained to ask...

Read more in Migraine and headache sufferers - We're off to DC on your behalf!

WomenHeart - Education and Advocacy

WomenHeart the National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease

Did you know...?

• 435,000 American women have heart attacks each year; 83,000 are under age 65 and 9,000 are under age 45. Their average age is 70.4.
• Heart disease is the leading cause of death of American women and kills 32% of them
• More women than men die of heart disease each year, yet women receive only:
  • 33% of angioplasties, stents and bypass surgeries
  • 28% of inplantable defibrillators and
  • 36% of open-heart surgeries
• Women comprise only 25% of participants in all heart-related research studies.

WomenHeart is a wonderful network dedicated to women's heart health. They educate, support, and advocate for change. Their policy goals are:

• Increased coverage for affordable prescription medicines, diagnostic tests, and medical devices.
• Improved physician training and use of appropriate diagnostic tests to identify early signs of heart disease in women.
• Earlier access to cardiologists for high risk women.
• Increased ability of emergency room staff to promptly identify and aggressively treat heart attacks in women.
• Increased and improved smoking cessation programs for women.
• More women participating in clinical trials to test new treatments.
• Access to health insurance for women with low incomes.
• Increased CPR training and availability of automated external defibrillators.

Working to prevent blindness and vision loss

Did you know that more than half of blindness is preventable? The people at Prevent Blindness America know it, and they've been working dilligently since 1908 to educate and work to prevent blindness and preserve sight.

What does Prevent Blindness America do?...

1. Screen.
2. Educate.
3. Advocate.
4. Support vital research.
5. Train and certify adult and children's vision screeners and screening instructors.

Find out more about Prevent Blindness America by visiting their Web site.