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No, it's not political! The surprise is that this is our 3rd "monthly" newsletter this year (time flies, but how did this happen?). Please Contact Us to let us know if these longer newsletters are useful, or if you prefer the briefer special announcements.

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Events
Focus on Fibromyalgia
Other Clinical Studies You Can Join
Advocacy Actions
Research Review
Pharma News
How You Can Help 

Events

“ME/CFS: A surge of interest and knowledge” – Saturday, Nov. 5, 2016, 1 p.m.

Please see details and Register now to attend the program with Dr. Anthony Komaroff. 

This event is filling up fast. Register now to reserve your place. Please note important travel advisory.

Patient Day at IACFSME conference, October 27th, Ft. Lauderdale, FL

Not sure yet if you want to attend the IACFS/ME's 12th International Scientific Conference? Here are two additional late-breaking events on October 27th:

  1. Advocacy Roundtable, 5 p.m., hosted by Charmian Proskauer and Mary Dimmock. Anyone interested may participate (location to be announced in the program). The conference is a rare occasion for patients, caregivers, researchers, and clinicians from all around the US and the world to meet face-to-face. This session allows anyone interested in advocacy to learn about and discuss issues affecting the community internationally.
  2. Free screening of "Forgotten Plague", directed by Ryan Prior and Nicole Castillo, 6:30 p.m. Hailed a "Must-See Documentary" by the Huffington Post, this movie tells the story of ME/CFS through interviews with patients, clinicians, and researchers. After Ryan Prior came down with ME/CFS in 2006, he embarked on a journey to find out why the CDC and medical system had neglected his disease, leaving millions sidelined from life. The film chronicles Ryan's journey, allowing us to follow along.

REGISTER BEFORE OCTOBER 27 AND SAVE $25-$50! Visit the conference website for more information and to register for the meeting. There will also be a separate pre-conference session hosted by the Institute for Neuro Immune Medicine Oct. 26. Visit www.nova.edu/nim for more information. Spread the word!

 

Focus on Fibromyalgia

New Guidelines for the management of Fibromyalgia

New Guidelines for the management of Fibromyalgia have been published by the European League Against Rheumatism (EULER). Most valuable is a listing of the various possible treatments and the evidence for the effectiveness of each. The strongest evidence is for patient education and non-pharmacologic intervention, but the recommendations also emphasize the need for an individualized approach. The authors caution, however, that the "size of effect for many treatments is relatively modest," and that further research is needed to determine optimal treatment strategies and improve patient outcomes.

Fibromyalgia Pain Study is Recruiting - Boston metro area

This study is still recruiting patients as of October 2016.

This is a brain imaging study of pain responses. The study includes 5-14 assessment visits, lasting from 2-3 hours each. You may be eligible if you are 18-65 years old, are either generally healthy or have fibromyalgia, do not have a serious heart condition or certain other medical conditions, are not taking certain types of medications, and are not pregnant. There is no cost to you for any of the procedures and compensation up to $500.00 is provided.

For more details, see the study flyer.

The research takes place at the Brigham & Women’s Pain Management Center, 850 Boylston St, Chestnut Hill, and at the MGH Martinos Center
for Biomedical Imaging. For further information, please contact the study coordinator Olivia Franceschelli at 617-732-9718 or by email at ofranceschelli :at: partners.org.

 

Other Clinical Studies You Can Join

ME/CFS Genes Study

The Institute for Neuro-Immune Medicine, under the direction of Dr. Nancy Klimas, is conducting an exciting new research study creating a Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/ Chronic Fatigue Syndrome genetic database, linked to online symptom and function questionnaires, to utilize for future research discovery. The intention of this database is to allow investigators the possibility of nearly limitless research opportunities, such as identifying biomarkers used for establishing diagnoses or correlations between symptom clusters and specific genetic variations among people. If you have been curious to learn about your genetic ancestry, you can use the same results to further research on ME/CFS!

Learn more here.

Focus Group on Post-Exertional Malaise – NIH via Workwell Foundation

Dr. Brian Walitt, lead investigator of the ME/CFS Intramural Study, has extended an invitation to Workwell Foundation to help recruit patients for a focus group on post-exertional malaise. If you are a person diagnosed with ME/CFS and have post-exertional malaise, please consider enrolling in this study/focus group. The information gained from the focus group will be used to improve interviews and questionnaires about ME/CFS.

Get more details about the focus group procedures.

 

Advocacy Actions

 

Research Review

 

Pharma News

 

How you can help

Donate now or during our Annual Appeal

Members can join or renew at any time during the year, and make a donation in any amount at that time, but our Association formally fund-raises only twice a year – in the spring we raise money for research, and at the end of the year we raise money to fund our operations for the coming year. We are an all-volunteer organization, so every dollar we get goes to fund our work. If you value what we do, please consider a donation in any amount. If you receive our formal “annual appeal” letter, please respond as generously as you can. Thank you to all our members and donors, who make our work possible!

 

Amazon Smile - Give as you shop.

Do you shop at Amazon.com? Amazon Smile is a program that allows shoppers at Amazon.com to contribute part of the price of all their eligible items to a charity of their choice at no extra cost to them. The more people who sign up, the more the charity receives. Please consider joining this program. Our Association's unique link is http://smile.amazon.com/ch/04-3014644. Just bookmark this link and always start your shopping from smile.amazon.com. Ask your friends and family to bookmark this link as well. Only purchases made starting from smile.amazon.com are eligible for donations.

 

Volunteer opportunities

You can help other patients from your own home. Join our Physician Referral team! Contact Us to let us know if you are interested in learning more.

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