Derrick Miller
DUNCAN — Just by looking at someone, it can be impossible to tell if he or she is living with multiple sclerosis (MS).
J’Nell Ash, who is one of the leaders of the local MS support group, said, “Our goal is to make people aware that multiple sclerosis is out there.”
Duncan Mayor Gene Brown signed a declaration Monday to recognize March 8-14 as Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week.
Multiple Sclerosis is a disease that attacks the central nervous system. It is estimated that about 400,000 people in the United States and more than 21,000 people in Oklahoma are living with the disease. The cause is mostly unknown, and there is no cure.
The week will begin with a benefit dinner, which will be hosted by Peyton’s Place in the Chisholm Mall. The dinner will be from 5 to 9 p.m. Monday. A percentage of the money made during that time will be donated to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, a non-profit organization focused on helping to bring an end to the disease and providing vital services to people with the disease.
Ash said great strides have been taken to find treatments to multiple sclerosis. She said the disease used to be a sentence to a wheelchair, but now people are able to live active lives because of discovers of treatments.
She said ms research brings people hope. One of the main desires of people with multiple sclerosis is to find an oral treatment, but the biggest hope is to find a cure. Ash said funding for research in important because of these hopes and for the people living with ms.
The week will involve demonstrations with a multiple sclerosis symptom simulating kit. This will take place 9 to 11 a.m. and from 1 to 3 p.m. March 10 in the Simmons Center.
Ash and fellow group leader, Kassie Gilmore said there’s more to the support group than people sitting around feeling sorry for themselves. They said the group is about choosing to live and is meant to educate.
The self-help group meets at 6:30 p.m. on the third Thursday of each month in the Duncan Regional Hospital conference room 2. For information, call David Jones at 580-252-2439.
— Derrick Miller is a reporter for The Duncan Banner. He can be reached at 580-255-5354, Ext. 160, or via e-mail at derrick.miller@duncanbanner.com.
