Share Your Data to Untangle ALS!

Our ALS Community recently broke the 5,000-member mark, making it the largest of its kind in the world as well as the ideal platform for expedited research.  And that’s just what we’re working on. Since the community’s launch in 2006, we’ve conducted a number of research studies, both internally and in collaboration with leaders in… Continue reading Share Your Data to Untangle ALS!

ALS Patient Interview: Never Give Up

We continue our series this week of getting to you the person, not just the “patient.”  Today’s interview is with “iceberg,” a member of our PatientsLikeMe ALS Community and another 2010 newsletter interviewee.   Read on to learn more about what keeps him motivated, how his condition has affected his work life and how he… Continue reading ALS Patient Interview: Never Give Up

Share and Compare: A PatientsLikeMe Year in Review (Part III – more R&D)

The research team is very proud of how our team has grown in 2010 and the impact we’ve made in the academic community.  In 2010 alone, PatientsLikeMe and our work were mentioned in scientific literature more than 133 times.  All of this is because of what you share with us. Yesterday, we highlighted some of… Continue reading Share and Compare: A PatientsLikeMe Year in Review (Part III – more R&D)

Overcoming Obstacles – Newsletter Highlight 2010

Last week, we posted highlights from our December community newsletter interviews. As we close out 2010, we want to spotlight another question asked this month – one that is relative to all members, all patients (no matter the condition).  What obstacles have you faced and overcome this year? To review all of our newsletters, you… Continue reading Overcoming Obstacles – Newsletter Highlight 2010

Sharing and Learning with PatientsLikeMe

In December community newsletters (launched earlier this week), we asked some of our members to think about what they’ve shared and compared in 2010.  Below are highlighted answers from each interviewee across all nine community newsletters.  Thank you for your contributions. We also want to thank all of you who have contributed to the 90… Continue reading Sharing and Learning with PatientsLikeMe

FDA’s New Guidance on Patient-Reported Outcomes

We’re big fans of patient-reported outcomes (PROs) here at PatientsLikeMe, defined by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) as: “A measurement based on a report that comes directly from the patient about the status of a patient’s health condition without amendment or interpretation of the patient’s response by a clinician or anyone else.” The self-report… Continue reading FDA’s New Guidance on Patient-Reported Outcomes

PatientsLikeMe @ The 20th International ALS/MND Symposium in Berlin

The 20th International Symposium on ALS/MND took place (December 8th-10th) in Berlin, Germany. This is the 4th ALS Symposium attended by PatientsLikeMe, and certainly the most exciting in terms of new findings. The annual symposium is a tremendous opportunity for researchers from around the world to meet and share new developments – it’s the big… Continue reading PatientsLikeMe @ The 20th International ALS/MND Symposium in Berlin

PatientsLikeMe Adds Online Community for People With Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

PatientsLikeMe made the following announcement last night at the TEDMED conference.  For more on Jamie Heywood’s presentation, check out what people are saying on Twitter. – – – – – – – PATIENTSLIKEME ADDS ONLINE COMMUNITY FOR PEOPLE WITH CHRONIC FATIGUE SYNDROME Researchers Use Open Medical Network to Measure Real-World Impact of XMRV Virus Cambridge,… Continue reading PatientsLikeMe Adds Online Community for People With Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Charting the course of PLS and PMA

Primary Lateral Sclerosis (PLS) and Progressive Muscular Atrophy (PMA) are two rare variants of the disease ALS. Normally, ALS affects the upper motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord, as well as the lower motor neurons that send signals from the spinal cord directly to muscles. PLS and PMA are different because PLS only… Continue reading Charting the course of PLS and PMA

Rare Diseases: Well-Done Online

There are rare diseases, and there are rare diseases. Here at PatientsLikeMe our first community was built for patients with ALS (estimated US Prevalence: 30,000), and in common with our other neurological communities there is a familiar list of challenges: low public awareness, little funding for research, and a lack of adequate treatments. However, over… Continue reading Rare Diseases: Well-Done Online