CUPERTINO, Calif., Dec. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --
Stand4Lyme® Foundation has created a critically needed,
credible and comprehensive video on the serious consequences of
Lyme and tick-borne diseases. More than a dozen esteemed scientists
discuss the facts and urgent need to address this global
epidemic. In "Taking A Stand 4 Lyme" a group of collaborative
researchers and clinicians speak candidly to help educate and bring
awareness to these complex and, in some cases, fatal diseases.
Stand4Lyme Foundation makes a clear business case for
pharmaceutical support and federal research funding to develop
reliable diagnostic tools and accessible effective medical
treatment. This is critically needed for the vast
population exposed to Lyme and other tick-borne diseases, an
increasing source of morbidity and mortality worldwide.
"Tick-borne diseases are hazardous to your health. Even one
tick, one bite can give you multiple bacterial infections," says
Mark Davis, Ph.D, Director of the
Stanford Institute for Immunity, Transplantation and Infection,
Co-Director of the Stanford Lyme Disease Working Group.
Federal funding for Lyme disease research has stagnated for
decades. Now this stealth pathogen has spread to all 50 states and
more than 80 countries. Lyme disease costs the US health care
system billions of dollars every year, yet research is
significantly underfunded. Lyme disease is six times more prevalent
than HIV, yet the Lyme budget of the NIH is less than 1% that of
HIV.
Stand4Lyme Foundation's compelling video explains the real
risks, scope and costs to society and the life-changing health and
financial challenges Lyme patients and their families face. The
solution will require collaboration across a diverse group of
stakeholders including patients and patient advocates, physicians,
scientists, and government and public health officials. The Health
and Human Services Tick-Borne Disease Working Group submitted a
formal report to Congress this fall about the human health and
economic impacts of these illnesses as well as their
recommendations for how to best address them. The goal of this
video is to support these recommendations and help educate all
stakeholders from a scientific perspective and garner increased
government support and funding.
Promising interdisciplinary collaborative studies are in
progress by leading researchers and breakthroughs are on the
horizon. Stand4Lyme Foundation facilitated funding for
several new scientific findings soon to be published. "We are
hopeful these discoveries will develop into solutions to help the
millions that remain debilitated regain their quality of life. We
are particularly excited about new research on Lyme disease and the
immune responses to the bacterium under way in Dr. Irving Weissman's state-of-the-art lab at the
Stanford School of Medicine, spearheaded by Michal Caspi Tal, a postdoctoral fellow," says
Sherry Cagan, president and founder
of the Stand4Lyme Foundation. "With the interdisciplinary team
of experts and their collaborators in place working together and
today's advanced technology, I know that the only
thing standing in the way of stopping this pathogen is
funding."
Watch the video at: Stand4Lyme.org
About Lyme disease
The Lyme disease bacterium, Borelli burgdorferi is a
spirochete similar to syphilis and is transmitted by a bite of an
infected tick. Lyme disease, is the fastest growing infectious
disease in the US and prevalent in all 50 states and in over 80
countries. There are over 300,000 new cases each year, yet Lyme
research remains significantly underfunded. Currently, there
is no known cure and diagnostic tests are unreliable potentially
subjecting patients to debilitating symptoms, even death. Lyme
patients are often misdiagnosed as having other diseases such as
rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, ALS and
Alzheimer's.
About Stand4Lyme Foundation
Stand4Lyme® Foundation joins forces with scientists to pave a
medical path to wellness for Lyme disease patients — with the goal
of ending the prolonged suffering of millions. With a strategic
mission, the Stand4Lyme Fund, established at the Stanford School of
Medicine helps supports the Stanford Lyme Disease Working Group and
their collaborators' research. Stand4Lyme is dedicated to
accelerating a cure for Lyme disease by actively facilitating
promising studies of key collaborators with resources to transform
the currently underfunded Lyme paradigm. Stand4Lyme is a Silicon
Valley-based 501(c)(3) charitable organization and is volunteer
led. Tax ID 47-5095146 Stand4Lyme.org
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SOURCE Stand4Lyme Foundation