2 Fox Focus | Faster, Further Toward a Cure
Message from the CEO:
Faster, Further Toward a Cure
WHEN MICHAEL AND I LAUNCHED
The Michael J. Fox Foundation, we knew that closing the gap between scientific possibility and real-world impact would be daunting. We also knew that people living with Parkinson’ s and their loved ones were counting on us. With such high stakes, we promised to be bold with our capital, move quickly and say yes to the best science.
Our aggressive research agenda is shaped by people who know Parkinson’ s best: the patients, care partners and families whose urgency sharpens our priorities. For nearly 26 years, we’ ve worked to reshape and accelerate how drug development unfolds, investing early and making smart bets to speed discoveries. We’ ve deepened our understanding of Parkinson’ s biology and the factors that increase risk. Today, those insights are advancing the next generation of treatments, now guided by a validated
biomarker that helps researchers target the underlying biology of the disease.
The Parkinson’ s treatment pipeline— once stalled and underfunded— now includes more than 175 therapies in clinical development. About half aim to improve symptom management. The other half are disease-modifying therapies that target biological processes underlying PD. That shift— from managing symptoms to slowing or stopping disease— represents a turning point to address a critical unmet need for the patient community.
The same biological understanding we’ re using to develop disease-modifying therapies is informing another aspect of a future without Parkinson’ s: prevention. Our cover story( see page 7) highlights a first-of-itskind clinical trial designed to test multiple promising therapies in people who are