Professor Malaspina part of team awarded the Healey International Prize for Innovation in ALS

The fifth annual Sean M. Healey International Prize for Innovation in ALS was awarded during the 34th International Symposium on ALS/MND in Basel. The team efforts over the last decade have established neurofilaments as a biomarker for ALS and enabled significant progress in early diagnosis, clinical stratification and prognostic definition of this rapidly progressive neurodegenerative disorder. The work over the years has involved studies on the biology of structural changes in motor cells, assay development and the establishment of large longitudinal bioresources of clinical data and biological samples which have been critical in the validation of biomarkers for ALS. 

Professor Malaspina and the Queen Square Motor Neuron Disease Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of  Neurology, have been instrumental in the development of all aspects of this research:

“The establishment of a novel biomarkers framework in ALS is having and will have a transformative effect in the clinical trial landscape and help understanding the natural history of ALS from its pre-symptomatic stage, while individuals at risk may in the future be able to access early treatment” Prof Malaspina said. 

Links 

• The Sean M. Healey & AMG Center for ALS at Massachusetts General Hospital
• Professor Malaspina's academic profile
• Queen Square Motor Neuron Disease Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of  Neurology