May 30, 2022 –
With approximately one in 400 Canadians with MS and increasing diagnostic rates, World Multiple Sclerosis Day is coming very close to home for many. Today, May 30, is a day to take the time to talk about this devastating disease and educate ourselves.
Rick Waugh
The family of Rick Waugh, a UM student, is directly affected by MS. Her sister-in-law, Claire Larson, a UM Kinesiology student, was diagnosed with MS at a young age and has lived with the disease for many years. The Waugh family has witnessed the toll it can entail, but it is their resilience that has inspired them to create and fund a Multiple Sclerosis Research Chair in their alma mater. The aim of this work is to learn more about MS and how it affects patients living with other comorbidities to improve their quality of life.
When asked why World Multiple Sclerosis Day is important, Waugh says, “It can mobilize and raise awareness of the importance of funding that we hope to raise internationally enough to end MS.”
In 2016, Dr. Ruth Ann Marrie received the Waugh Family Chair in Multiple Sclerosis to advance this vital research. The donation to create this Chair has allowed Dra. Marrie focuses her time and resources on how coexisting health conditions such as depression / anxiety disorders, diabetes, or heart conditions can affect the diagnosis, treatment, and outcomes of MS patients.
“Our findings suggest that if we detected and treated people with depression / anxiety disorders effectively, we could dramatically improve their quality of life,” says Dr. Marrie. “Our results also suggest that other coexisting health conditions, such as diabetes, also affect MS. So all of this really raises the question of whether doing something about these coexisting health conditions could improve MS.”
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the availability of research resources over the past two years, but this dedicated funding has ensured that Dr. Marrie can continue uninterrupted.
“There have been many ups and downs with research resources, so this funding has been important in allowing us to keep our team together and retain their experience in our research area,” says Dr. Marrie.
Not only does Canada have a high incidence of MS, but by province, Manitoba has the highest number of cases per capita in the country, which is another reason why Waugh and his family chose to return. Although he lives in Toronto after moving to be CEO of Scotiabank, now retired Waugh believes that philanthropy plays an important role in the future of healthcare and UM is taking those steps.
“Our family has focused on people,” Waugh says. “That’s why the chair is trying to get the right people to make a difference. Funding for research can make positive changes in people’s health on a day-to-day basis through diagnosis, treatment and time. just wait”.
Days like World Multiple Sclerosis Day are a reminder that more work needs to be done. Researchers such as Dr. Marrie and her team are making great strides, but funding is the only way they can really move the MS needle.
Today’s UM staff