Government to invest £375 million in neurodegenerative disease research

THE UK government will invest £375 million over the next five years to help improve understanding and treatment for a range of neurodegenerative diseases.

The funding would help people living with neurodegenerative diseases to live longer, healthier lives because of innovative new research.

At least £50 million will be made available specifically for research to help find a cure for motor neurone disease (MND) - a condition that affects the brain and nerves and affects 5,000 people in the UK.

For MND, a new NIHR Research Unit will be set up to coordinate research applications for the new funding, encouraging more innovative studies with the ultimate goal of finding a cure.

The government has already invested millions of pounds in MND research, including over £7 million to support pioneering clinical trials, which have led to major advances in how the disease is understood.

Health secretary, Sajid Javid, said: “Neurodegenerative conditions like MND can have a devastating impact on people’s lives and I’m committed to ensuring the government does everything we can to fight these diseases and support those affected.

“We’ve already invested millions in understanding and treating MND and our new funding commitment will back more research into this and other neurodegenerative diseases.

“The UK is a global leader in medical research. Our world-class research sector was central to the discovery of lifesaving treatments for Covid-19 like dexamethasone and Tocilizumab, as well as the development of the vaccine programme which has saved hundreds of thousands of lives.

“We will continue to harness this expertise and innovation to support pioneering projects to find better treatments for those living with motor neurone disease, like the excellent work underway at NIHR Sheffield Biomedical Research Centre where scientists are trialling new drugs to treat the condition.”