What People Are Saying

“The plan for iConquerMS™ contains exciting elements that will bring together patients in significant numbers to build credible data for meaningful research. Working together, patients, clinicians, and researchers can significantly advance our understanding and treatment of this condition. My colleagues and I at the UTSW Clinical Center for MS are very pleased to offer our unequivocal support for this initiative.”

“When I was diagnosed with MS in 2006 at the age of 37, I made a commitment to meet the challenges of this disease head-on. I started ActiveMSers.org that same year to motivate and inspire those with MS to stay as active as possible regardless of disability. iConquerMS™ shares that passion, that moxie, that unrelenting determination to conquer multiple sclerosis. Don’t underestimate all that we can achieve together through this critical initiative.”

“Having worked in the MS field of patient advocacy for almost two decades, I am genuinely delighted to have this pioneering opportunity to provide leadership for this new and innovative MS Patient-Powered Research Network. I encourage everyone in the MS world to learn more about this exciting opportunity which has such great potential to improve MS learnings and lives in the days ahead.”

"With iConquerMS™ in place, people with MS will be able to participate in research that will be meaningful to them in a personal way, due to their contributions in the process. Gathering the observations and experiences of this large number of MS patients into one location will be welcomed by researchers, such as those at GNS Healthcare, who can only benefit from this large-scale compilation of patient-contributed data."

“This is our chance for meaningful change – thanks to iConquerMS™ we can stop saying no one listens to the people living with MS, and contribute our ideas and health data to make a difference. I want researchers to know about me and my life; my data – and yours – hold the clues that will unlock the mysteries of multiple sclerosis. Getting involved is easy and I invite you to join me as iConquerMS™.”

“MS is a highly heterogeneous set of disorders and we do not yet understand all the factors that contribute to or exacerbate the disease. Nor do we fully comprehend the impact the disease has on the individual. A patient-powered research network can provide access to a broad spectrum of patients and harness the insights they have to their own disease. This insight is an essential, as yet missing, element of the scientific research enterprise. With advances in mobile and Internet technologies, the time is right to engage patients directly through a sophisticated and sensitive IT-based solution.”

"Creating a national network such as iConquerMS™ to amass and manage longitudinal patient and provider outcomes data will significantly expedite the validation process and the time to market for innovative products that improve the quality of care. It allows institutions and companies to work together to integrate patient, provider, and research information. Without the iConquerMS™ approach, it would not be commercially feasible or affordable for an early-stage biomarker company such as MSDx to undertake this approach to data collection."

“I am delighted to lead the highly dedicated and diverse team that is building the iConquerMS™ initiative, putting people with MS at the center of MS research. This initiative is the most exciting research effort I have participated in, or even heard about, in my 40-year career. I heartily applaud the innovative vision of PCORI for a national patient-centered clinical research network – a tiger team has been unleashed on clinical research! We are invigorated by the enthusiastic support for iConquerMS™ from people with MS across the United States. Empowering people with MS to be involved in every aspect of research – especially to address questions that matter most to them – is the surest way to rapidly advance our understanding of MS, to generate better, personalized treatment strategies and, ultimately, to cure this devastating disorder.”