FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ON March 26, 2014
New York Researcher Wins Sheila Essey Award for ALS Research
PHILADELPHIA -
The and are awarding the 2014 Sheila Essey Award: An Award for ALS Research to Jeremy M. Shefner, MD, PhD, from Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, NY. Shefner will receive the award during the Academy鈥檚 66th , April 26-May 3, 2014, in Philadelphia. The Annual Meeting is the world鈥檚 largest gathering of neurologists with more than 12,000 attendees and more than 2,500 scientific presentations on the latest research advancements in brain disease. The Essey Award recognizes individuals who have made significant research contributions in the search for the cause, prevention of and cure for (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig鈥檚 disease. The $50,000 prize is to be used toward continuing ALS research. ALS is a motor neuron disease which is characterized by the gradual degeneration and death of motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord leading to muscle weakness. People with ALS eventually become paralyzed and die from respiratory failure an average of three years after symptoms first appear. Shefner is receiving the award for his research in clinical therapeutic development and for investigations of new ways to measure disease progression in ALS in the hopes of making clinical trials shorter and more efficient, and speed the process of bringing new and effective therapies to patients. 鈥淢easures of muscle strength have been used in many clinical trials, but methods have been limited by patient tolerability and expense. Strength measurement using handheld instruments can be performed rapidly and easily, and predicts important aspects of patient function,鈥 said Shefner. 鈥淎ssessment of the number of functioning nerve cells contacting a muscle in a patient as well as measures of muscle structure also provide valuable and reliable information for clinical trials.鈥 Added Shefner, 鈥淚 am honored to receive this award, as I have devoted my research career to the study of ALS and its possible treatments. It is humbling to be placed alongside others who have received this award as the ALS research community continues to work toward improving the lives of patients with this devastating disease.鈥 Sponsored by the 好色先生 and The ALS Association, this award is supported through the philanthropy of the Essey Family Fund and The ALS Association. Learn more about ALS at .