MS patients sought for medical study

KANNAPOLIS — Duke University’s medical research study at the N.C. Research Campus in Kannapolis is now enrolling patients with multiple sclerosis.

Dubbed the MURDOCK Study for campus founder and California billionaire David Murdock, Duke’s project aims to recruit 1,000 people with multiple sclerosis.

Anyone 18 years or older with MS can join, regardless of where he or she lives. Typically, people must live in Kannapolis and Cabarrus County to join the study.

Participants give samples of blood and urine, which are banked in a facility in Kannapolis so scientists at the Research Campus can study different diseases, disease progression and response to treatment.

The MS study, led by Dr. Simon Gregory of Duke University, has partnered with the Multiple Sclerosis Center of Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, NorthEast Neurology in Concord and Neuroscience Associates of Greenville, S.C.

The consortium is recruiting and enrolling participants who suffer from MS so scientists can identify biological indicators, or biomarkers, to help the scientific and medical communities better understand the progression of the disease.

This is not a drug study, so participants will not receive any form of treatment. It’s an effort to identify a large group of individuals who suffer from the same disease.

Mysteries surround MS, including how the disease progresses and why certain people respond to treatment while others do not. More than 400,000 people have been diagnosed in the United States, and MS is the most common neurological disorder among young adults.

Enrollment in the study includes scheduling an appointment at a participating clinic. During the visit, participants will go through an informed consent discussion and give small samples of blood and urine. They also will complete two brief questionnaires, one related to medical history and a second addressing their MS diagnosis.

A visit takes less than one hour, and each volunteer will be compensated for their time and willingness to participate.

To sign up, contact one of these clinics:

• NorthEast Neurology in Concord, 704-250-5861.

• The MS Center in Charlotte, 704-446-1902.

• Neuroscience Associates in Greenville, S.C., 864-454-4500.

The MURDOCK Study stands for Measurement to Understand the Reclassification of Disease Of Cabarrus/Kannapolis.