FIFTEEN M.E./CFS Subgroups/Types ?

[truthseeker]

Prof Stephen Holgate. Chair,Medical Research Council (MRC) M.E./CFS Expert Group said:

"Anyone with a diagnosis of M.E./CFS. will likely be aware of the difficulties in researching this area for many
reasons,not least of which is the sheer complexity of the disorder, there is know a VERY STRONG CASE
that M.E./CFS comprises a series of disorders with overlapping symptoms and because of this trying to uncover a SINGLE 'CAUSE' or THERAPY is doomed to failure.The concept of MULTIPLE CAUSES
For what originally has been labelled as a single disorder is NOT UNCOMMON in complex chronic disease."

Prof. Holgate also said there are potentially up to FIFTEEN M.E./CFS SUBGROUPS/TYPES.

WHAT ARE THE FIFTEEN SUBGROUPS/TYPES ?

[georginaadams]

http://phoenixrising.me/archives/18222


I think that is what he would like to establish through research.

[Dr Charles Shepherd]

Stephen is putting into scientific language what many of us already believe:

That the ME/CFS umbrella contains people with a wide range of clinical presentations and disease pathways - rather like saying everyone with chronic joint pain could come under a 'chronic joint pain syndrome' diagnosis.

And with this being the case it clearly isn't helpful to claim that everyone is going to be helped by the same approach to management - drug or non drug.

We already have some ideas as to how you could start to sub-group people with ME/CFS from both clinical and pathological data - and this is one if the research initiatives that those of us who are working with Stephen on the UK RC want to pursue

[Dr Charles Shepherd]

Launch of the UK ME/CFS Research Collaborative at the Wellcome Collection in London:

http://www.meassociation.org.uk/?p=15184

[Bluebottle]

It is interesting that Dr Jonathan Kerr identified subgroups in myalgic encephalomyelitis some years ago. The MRC apparently refused him further funding for his research, preferring instead to fund psychiatrists' research into behaviour management of fatigue.

[Dr Charles Shepherd]

Yes, Jonathan carried out some interesting research into gene expression in ME/CFS and identified some sub-groups.

Similar research into gene expression was carried out by Professor John Gow in Glasgow with a grant from the MEA

If you are referring to MRC funding for PACE this was agreed years before the gene expression study started

If you are following developments you should know that the MRC set up an Expert Group on ME/CFS Research (I was a member) to look at biomedical research and list priorities

As a result £1.5 million of ring fence funded has been awarded to biomedical research projects

Unfortunately, Jonathan Kerr has now left ME/CFS research