The National MS Society’s vision is a world free of MS. Our mission is to mobilize people and resources to drive research for a cure and to address the challenges of everyone affected by MS.
WHO WE ARE
WHAT IS MS?
The National MS Society started with a simple act of love – a sister trying to help her brother recover from MS. In 1946, Sylvia Lawry gathered 20 of the nation’s most prominent research scientists and founded what would become the National MS Society (incorporated in 1947). The mission, to fund research and provide information and other services to enhance the lives of those impacted.
Every hour someone is newly diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, a chronic, unpredictable disease of the central nervous system, which includes the brain, optic nerves and spinal cord. MS interrupts the flow of information within the brain, and between the brain and the body. Symptoms range from numbness and tingling to blindness and paralysis. The progress, severity and specific symptoms of MS in any one person cannot yet be predicted.
Today, we are a collective of passionate individuals who want to do something about MS now! We help each person address the challenges of living with MS through a 50-state network of chapters. We help people affected by MS by funding cutting-edge research, driving change through advocacy, facilitating professional education, and providing programs and services that help people with MS and their families move their lives forward. The Utah-Southern Idaho Chapter, headquartered in Salt Lake City with an office in Boise, Idaho, serves a diverse urban and rural territory spanning from roughly McCall, Idaho to St. George, Utah.
Two to three times more women than men are diagnosed with MS, but in men, the disease often takes a more aggressive course. Most people are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50; however, there are more than 10,000 documented pediatric cases. MS affects more than 400,000 Americans and 2.1 million people worldwide. Our chapter has one of the highest incidence rates in the country. We estimate 1 in 300 is affected in our area, and 6,600 of them have registered with the Chapter to receive information and support services. It is not known what causes MS. There is no cure, yet! 3