New funding announcement for the Euan MacDonald Centre’s MND clinical trial

We were thrilled to hear the news last week that MND Scotland and the MND Association have announced £2.5M funding for the Euan MacDonald Centre for Motor Neuron Disease Research clinical trial, MND-SMART, which was set up by our founder Euan!

The Euan MacDonald Centre’s MND-SMART trial is the largest clinical trial for Motor Neuron Disease in the UK. The innovative, smart trial can test more than one drug at a time, and is adaptive, so new drugs can be added to the trial while those showing as ineffective can be dropped.

This new investment sees MND Scotland pledging £2 million into the trial – the largest ever research investment in the charity’s 42-year history. In addition, they’re partnering with the MND Association of England, Wales and Northern Ireland, which has committed an additional £500,000 bringing the total investment to £2.5 million.

The Euan MacDonald Centre was established in 2007 by Euan MacDonald MBE and his father, Donald MacDonald CBE, at the University of Edinburgh. MND-SMART has recruited more than 500 participants since it opened in 2020, and it’s open at 20 sites across the UK. The research is led by Professor Siddharthan Chandran and Professor Suvankar Pal.

Prof Pal said, “MND-SMART has already transformed the MND clinical trial landscape in the UK; so far more than 500 people with MND across Scotland and the rest of the UK have given up their time to take part in this vital research to identify potential new treatments. I’d like to thank each and every one of them, as well as the team of researchers and clinicians who continue to make this important research happen.”

Euan said, “It’s incredibly exciting to have received funding from MND Scotland and the MND Association, with support coming from MSPs in parliament. The MND-SMART trial is an innovative trial, one that we hope will continue to progress towards improving the lives of people diagnosed, and living with, MND.”

Tags: MND, motor neuron disease, mnd assocation, euan macdonald, euan macdonald centre for mnd research, mnd scotland, 2023, mnd funding