Michael J. Fox Foundation and 23andMe Announce Collaboration to Capture Parkinson's Experience at Scale and Amplify Patient Voice in Research and Care

October 30, 2017

- Fox Insight online digital platform facilitates partnership between patients and researchers to accelerate improved Parkinson's treatments and care

- Collaboration with 23andMe marries genetic and lived experience data to assemble holistic picture of Parkinson's disease

- Data to be made available to researchers worldwide starting in 2018

NEW YORK and MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., ‪Oct. 30, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research (MJFF) and 23andMe announced a collaboration to build a large, diverse cohort of both patients and control volunteers who have consented to participate in research. This cohort will provide researchers, drug makers, regulators and payers critical insight into the lived experience, genetics and variability of Parkinson's disease. The study, Fox Insight (foxinsight.org), is open to anyone 18 or older worldwide with or without Parkinson's disease and aims to recruit tens or even hundreds of thousands of patients to contribute data.

"Fox Insight amplifies the patient voice in research and enables high-impact scientific collaboration toward patient-relevant outcomes," says Todd Sherer, PhD, CEO of MJFF. "Our expanded partnership with 23andMe holds potential to illuminate new pathways to treatment breakthroughs by coupling genetic insights with the power of patient-reported phenotypic data."

Direct-from-patient Data Driving Discovery
Increasingly, Parkinson's patients seek to be active contributors to improved disease understanding and the search for new therapies. To that end, Fox Insight facilitates patient sharing of information about the lived experience of Parkinson's. 

The study complements traditional clinical research with scale and accessibility, supplementing in-person studies with cohort size and rigorous patient perspective data gathered over time. Fox Insight's flexible design enables integration of diverse data collection modalities — such as remote biological sample collections — and the online nature of the study allows a broader population of patients, who may face geographic, mobility or transportation challenges, to contribute data. 

Starting in 2018, data from Fox Insight will be de-identified and made accessible to qualified PD scientists in real time, for independent studies. The aim is to increase understanding of the variability and progression of PD, expand understanding of disease and influence research drug development and healthcare priorities. Access to the Fox Insight dataset can shorten research timelines, accelerate "go/no-go" decisions and advance new therapies faster.

"What I find really fascinating when I talk to Parkinson's patients is that we all have a different disease," says Michael J. Fox, who launched the Foundation in 2000 with a vision of bringing Parkinson's patients and scientists into a true two-way dialogue to speed patient-relevant research outcomes. "One of our Foundation's most important goals has been finding a way to incorporate patient involvement and patient knowledge and wisdom and enthusiasm in research. Capturing the natural back-and-forth between patients really helps doctors and researchers."

The Fox Insight study is sponsored by The Michael J. Fox Foundation and funded through Foundation investments of $6 million to date. Leadership philanthropic support for Fox Insight has been furnished by Connie and Steven Ballmer.

Collaboration with 23andMe Integrates Genetic and Lived Experience Data 
Through a collaboration between MJFF and personal genetics company 23andMe, Fox Insight participants diagnosed with Parkinson's also may choose to contribute genetic data to research by completing a 23andMe genetic test at no cost. This will open new opportunities for researchers to correlate clinical features of PD with underlying, individual genetic biology for better drug design toward precision medicine. 

"Joining forces with The Michael J. Fox Foundation will help our research goals of understanding, treating and preventing this disease," said Anne Wojcicki, 23andMe CEO and co-founder. "Making the data available to the wider research community will accelerate our understanding of Parkinson's disease." 

MJFF and 23andMe share a commitment to building large networks of patients and researchers to work together toward deeper understanding of Parkinson's and new PD treatments. From 2009 to 2017, 23andMe's PD Research Community (who may now choose to participate in Fox Insight) enrolled 12,000 patients who contributed genetic and phenotypic data for disease study. 23andMe continues to generate a deep well of knowledge surrounding the genetics behind PD and an infrastructure to mine data for genetic discovery.

Fox Insight study participants who are new to 23andMe will receive the full 23andMe service, including the option to access genetic health risk reports containing information on genetic variants that are associated with risk for Parkinson's and other conditions.

Genetic discoveries over the past two decades have revolutionized Parkinson's drug development by illuminating new pathological pathways that drug developers are targeting with therapies to slow or stop disease. Combining Fox Insight's datasets of genetic and phenotypic data will lead to more complete knowledge of the disease through better understanding of the underlying disease process, potential therapeutic targets, and how symptoms and disease course may differ depending on whether a genetic mutation is present. 

Patient privacy is a top Fox Insight priority. All contributed data is de-identified and kept on a secure server to maximize protection of individual-level data. Individuals who access their Parkinson's genetic health risk report are eligible for complimentary genetic counseling on PD-associated genes included in that report.

Fox Insight's genetic data collection is funded by The Michael J. Fox Foundation with a grant of more than $4 million to 23andMe, which includes the costs of making the 23andMe service available to participants at no cost, as well as storing and maintaining the data. 

For more information on how The Michael J. Fox Foundation and 23andMe are collaborating to speed Parkinson's genetic research, visit michaeljfox.org or 23andme.com/PD.

About The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research
As the world's largest nonprofit funder of Parkinson's research, The Michael J. Fox Foundation is dedicated to accelerating a cure for Parkinson's disease and improved therapies for those living with the condition today. The Foundation pursues its goals through an aggressively funded, highly targeted research program coupled with active global engagement of scientists, Parkinson's patients, business leaders, clinical trial participants, donors and volunteers. In addition to funding more than $750 million in research to date, the Foundation has fundamentally altered the trajectory of progress toward a cure. Operating at the hub of worldwide Parkinson's research, the Foundation forges groundbreaking collaborations with industry leaders, academic scientists and government research funders; increases the flow of participants into Parkinson's disease clinical trials with its online tool, Fox Trial Finder; promotes Parkinson's awareness through high-profile advocacy, events and outreach; and coordinates the grassroots involvement of thousands of Team Fox members around the world. 

For more information, visit us on the Web, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest.

About 23andMe
23andMe, Inc. is the leading consumer genetics and research company. Founded in 2006, the mission of the company is to help people access, understand and benefit from the human genome. The company was named by MIT Technology Review to its "50 Smartest Companies, 2017" list, and named one of Fast Company's "25 Brands That Matter Now, 2017." 23andMe has millions of customers worldwide, with ~ 85 percent of customers consented to participate in research. 23andMe, Inc. is located in Mountain View, CA. More information is available at www.23andMe.com.

SOURCE The Michael J. Fox Foundation

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/michael-j-fox-foundation-and-23andme-announce-collaboration-to-capture-parkinsons-experience-at-scale-and-amplify-patient-voice-in-research-and-care-300545227.html

Anavex Life Sciences Announces Additional Data at The Michael J. Fox Foundation’s Parkinson's Disease Therapeutics Conference

October 30, 2017

NEW YORK, Oct. 30, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Anavex Life Sciences Corp. (Anavex or the Company) (Nasdaq:AVXL), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing differentiated therapeutics for the treatment of neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental diseases including Alzheimer’s disease, other central nervous system (CNS) diseases, pain and various types of cancer, today announced additional data for ANAVEX^®2-73 in a model for experimental parkinsonism. The data will be shown today at the Michael J. Fox Foundation’s Parkinson's Disease Therapeutics Conference taking place at Convene Midtown East, New York City in a poster titled, “ANAVEX2-73, a clinical Alzheimer drug candidate, induces neurorestoration in experimental parkinsonism.”

The study’s principle investigators, Veronica Francardo, PhD and Angela Cenci, MD, PhD, Professor of Experimental Medical Research at Lund University, Sweden, stated, “These new results indicate that ANAVEX2-73 has robust neurorestorative effects on the nigrostriatal dopaminergic pathway in all doses tested. The encouraging results we have gathered in this model, coupled with the favorable profile of this compound in the Alzheimer’s disease trial, support the notion that ANAVEX2-73 is a promising clinical candidate drug for Parkinson’s disease.”

It was previously shown that ANAVEX2-73 significantly promotes recovery of motor functions (p<0.05), induces higher levels of striatal dopamine fibers (p<0.05) and reduces microglial activation (p<0.05) in a mouse model of nigrostriatal dopaminergic degeneration relevant to Parkinson's disease.

A consistent abnormality in Parkinson's disease is degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra, leading to a reduction of dopamine axon fibers and dopamine levels in the striatum. As tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) catalyzes the formation of L-DOPA, the rate-limiting step in the biosynthesis of dopamine, tyrosine hydroxylase-deficiency levels are correlated with the severity of parkinson-like motor deficits.

The additional data reveals that ANAVEX2-73 not only seems to have a wide dose-response profile but also activates neuroplasticity mechanisms and exerts noticeable neurorestorative effects on striatal dopamine axon fibers. This was confirmed by expression of a marker of axonal regeneration in the striatum, Growth Associated Protein 43 (GAP43), being co-localized with TH, which was only found in the ANAVEX2-73-treated animal cohorts but not in the control cohort.

Further analyses are ongoing in order to better understand the underlying mechanisms that contribute to the neurorestorative properties of ANAVEX2-73.

The study is supported by The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research.

“These findings are very encouraging and support our strategy to initiate a randomized and placebo controlled phase 2 study in Parkinson's disease with ANAVEX2-73,” said Christopher U. Missling, PhD, President and Chief Executive Officer of Anavex.

About The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research

As the world’s largest non-profit funder of Parkinson’s research, The Michael J. Fox Foundation is dedicated to accelerating a cure for Parkinson’s disease and improved therapies for those living with the condition today. The Foundation pursues its goals through an aggressively funded, highly targeted research program coupled with active global engagement of scientists, Parkinson’s patients, business leaders, clinical trial participants, donors and volunteers. In addition to funding more than $700 million in research to date, the Foundation has fundamentally altered the trajectory of progress toward a cure. Operating at the hub of worldwide Parkinson’s research, the Foundation forges ground breaking collaborations with industry leaders, academic scientists and government research funders; increases the flow of participants into Parkinson’s disease clinical trials with its online tool, Fox Trial Finder; promotes Parkinson’s awareness through high-profile advocacy, events and outreach; and coordinates the grassroots involvement of thousands of Team Fox members around the world.

About Anavex Life Sciences Corp.

Anavex Life Sciences Corp. (Nasdaq:AVXL) is a publicly traded biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the development of differentiated therapeutics for the treatment of neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental diseases including Alzheimer’s disease, other central nervous system (CNS) diseases, pain and various types of cancer. Anavex’s lead drug candidate, ANAVEX^®2-73, recently completed successfully a Phase 2a clinical trial for Alzheimer’s disease. ANAVEX^®2-73 is an orally available drug candidate that restores cellular homeostasis by targeting sigma-1 and muscarinic receptors. Preclinical studies demonstrated its potential to halt and/or reverse the course of Alzheimer’s disease. It has also exhibited anticonvulsant, anti-amnesic, neuroprotective and anti-depressant properties in animal models, indicating its potential to treat additional CNS disorders, including epilepsy. The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research has awarded Anavex a research grant to develop ANAVEX^®2-73 for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease to fully fund a preclinical study, which could justify moving ANAVEX^®2-73 into a Parkinson’s disease clinical trial. ANAVEX^®3-71, also targeting sigma-1 and M1 muscarinic receptors, is a promising preclinical drug candidate demonstrating disease modifications against the major Alzheimer’s hallmarks in transgenic (3xTg-AD) mice, including cognitive deficits, amyloid and tau pathologies, and also with beneficial effects on neuroinflammation and mitochondrial dysfunctions. Further information is available at www.anavex.com. You can also connect with the company on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements in this press release that are not strictly historical in nature are forward-looking statements. These statements are only predictions based on current information and expectations and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual events or results may differ materially from those projected in any of such statements due to various factors, including the risks set forth in the Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. All forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement and Anavex Life Sciences Corp. undertakes no obligation to revise or update this press release to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof.

For Further Information:
Anavex Life Sciences Corp.
Research & Business Development
Toll-free: 1-844-689-3939
Email:  info@anavex.com

/EIN News/ -- Investors & Media:
Clayton Robertson
The Trout Group
(646) 378-2900
crobertson@troutgroup.com

https://health.einnews.com/pr_news/412635663/anavex-life-sciences-announces-additional-data-at-the-michael-j-fox-foundation-s-parkinson-s-disease-therapeutics-conference

Focused ultrasound shows promise for treating Parkinson's tremor

October 30, 2017

Study examines potential of scalpel-free surgery to manage tremor

Jeff Elias, MD, of the University of Virginia Health System, pioneered the use of focused ultrasound for essential tremor, the most common movement disorder, and is now testing it for Parkinson's tremor.

An initial test to determine if a scalpel-free form of brain surgery can reduce tremor caused by Parkinson's disease has produced encouraging results. Further research is warranted, the researchers conclude in a paper published today by the scientific journal JAMA Neurology.

The small pilot study was led by Jeff Elias, MD, of the University of Virginia School of Medicine, and also was conducted at Swedish Neuroscience Institute in Seattle. Twenty-seven participants with tremor-dominant Parkinson's disease were enrolled in the study; the research team randomly assigned 20 to be treated with focused ultrasound waves on their brains, while the others received a fake procedure, to account for any potential placebo effect. (They were later offered the opportunity to have the actual procedure). All had tremor that had resisted medical treatment, and all continued taking their existing Parkinson's medication.

The trial participants who received the focused ultrasound procedure had a 62 percent median improvement in their hand tremor three months later. Those who underwent a sham procedure also improved to a lesser degree, however, suggesting some placebo effect. Additional testing is needed to better establish the effectiveness of focused ultrasound for Parkinson's tremor, the researchers concluded.

The median age of trial participants was 67.8 years, and 26 were male. The most significant side effects reported were mild numbness on one side of the body, which improved, and numbness of the face and finger, which were persistent. Two subjects also experienced partial weakness that recovered or improved during the study. (The procedure has since been modified to mitigate this risk of weakness, the researchers say.)

The full paper is available to read at JAMA Neurology for free.

About Focused Ultrasound

Focused ultrasound already has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of essential tremor, the most common movement disorder. That approval came after Elias and his colleagues at UVA pioneered the approach. Other researchers are also evaluating focused ultrasound's potential for treating many other conditions, including breast cancer, brain tumors, epilepsy and pain.

The technology works by focusing sound waves inside the body to generate a tiny hot spot, much like a magnifying glass focuses light. By carefully controlling this process, researchers can interrupt faulty brain circuits or destroy unwanted tissue. Unlike traditional brain surgery, there is no need to drill or cut into the skull. Magnetic resonance imaging lets them monitor the location and intensity of the procedure in real time, an important safety feature when making permanent changes to the brain.

Next Steps

The researchers believe that a larger, multicenter study is needed to better define the potential role of focused ultrasound in managing Parkinson's disease. 

"Our findings suggest that the patients likely to benefit from this approach are those for whom tremor reduction is enough to improve their quality of life," said UVA researcher Binit Shah, MD.

To learn more about focused ultrasound at UVA, visit uvahealth.com/focusedultrasound. To keep up with all the latest developments and research breakthroughs from UVA, subscribe to the Making of Medicine blog at makingofmedicine.virginia.edu.

###

About the Parkinson's Research

The research team consisted of Aaron E. Bond, Shah, Diane S. Huss, Robert F. Dallapiazza, Amy Warren, Madaline B. Harrison, Scott A. Sperling, Xin-Qun Wang, Ryder Gwinn, Jennie Witt, Susie Ro and Elias.

The research was supported by the Focused Ultrasound Foundation, the Commonwealth of Virginia, Diane and David Heller, Robert and Molly Hardie and the Prince Charitable Trust.

Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-10/uovh-fus103017.php

Michael J. Fox: Working towards Parkinson's cure has been "one of the great gifts of my life"

October 27, 2017

Actor Michael J. Fox is known to millions around the world for his work in the "Back to the Future" films, the TV series "Family Ties" and "Spin City," and more. But for the past two decades it's been his battle with Parkinson's disease, and his search for a cure, that may have generated the most attention.

Fox, 56, started noticing symptoms when he was 29, he says, and was diagnosed with early onset of the disease when he was 30. Looking back, he tells "CBS Sunday Morning" anchor Jane Pauley (in an interview to be broadcast on October 29) that sharing his battle publicly and joining with others to raise money has been a gift. 

"Yeah, well, I mean as happy-go-lucky as I seem to be and as at-ease with this as I seem to be, I mean, it sucks!" Fox tells Pauley. "I hate it. And I wish I wasn't in this situation, but it's been one of the great gifts of my life that I've been in the position to take my view of the suckitude of it and merge it with other people's view of the suckitude of it and try to find an answer." 

In a revealing interview, Fox opens up to Pauley about learning of his diagnosis; how he deals with the symptoms on a daily basis; and the work he's done through his Fox Foundation to raise nearly a billion dollars to fund Parkinson's research.

He says when he was diagnosed, he didn't know much about Parkinson's, except that "somebody's grandmother had it. I mean, it was not a thing that I noticed or thought about as this 29-year-old guy."  After the diagnosis, a doctor told him he had 10 years left to work, which shocked him at the time. 

He's since gone on to continue acting (he won an Emmy Award in 2009 for his work on "Rescue Me") and has written three bestselling books. 

A married father of four, Fox is focused on his foundation and seeking answers to Parkinson's. He's not expecting a cure within his lifetime, he says, but rather "vastly improved therapies." 

Asked how he thinks people will remember him 50 years from now -- either for the "Back to the Future" movies or for finding a cure for Parkinson's -- Fox laughs, then turns serious.

"I had a moment with somebody and they said, 'Someday there's gonna be a cure for Parkinson's and it's gonna be because of you,'" Fox says, "and to me this was the first time that it really struck me.  And not that I took it seriously -- but I feel part of something that is much more special that if it happens, it's much more special than any movie or any TV show."

The Emmy Award-winning "CBS Sunday Morning," hosted by Jane Pauley, is broadcast on CBS Sundays beginning at 9:00 a.m. ET. Executive producer is Rand Morrison. 

Be sure to follow the program on Twitter (@CBSSunday), Facebook, Instagram(#CBSSundayMorning) and at cbssundaymorning.com. "Sunday Morning" also streams on CBSN beginning at 9:30 a.m. ET, and is available on cbs.com, CBS All Access, and On Demand. You can also listen to "Sunday Morning" audio podcasts at Play.it.

https://health.einnews.com/article/412249418/5BqSMLJ_oZXy8xPn?lcf=Hzf-KE6h-Xmcpvzwcdl3CuzbRmZ8XaTUdg3y3lN96pg%3D

Impulsivity in Parkinson's disease

 October 30, 2017 by Allyson Mallya

Dopamine medications are effective in treating the motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease (PD), but dopamine agonists can trigger impulsive-compulsive behaviors (ICBs), such as compulsive gambling, eating or shopping, in a subset of patients. ICBs are thought to be caused by overstimulation of the mesocorticolimbic dopamine network, which regulates reward learning and executive function.

In a collaborative effort with Manus Donahue Ph.D., Daniel Claassen, M.D., and colleagues explored the neural underpinnings of ICBs in PD using a noninvasive imaging technique called arterial-spin-labeling (ASL)-MRI. ASL-MRI quantitatively measures cerebral blood flow (CBF), an indirect measure of brain metabolism and activity.

Comparing PD patients with and without ICBs, the researchers found that dopamine agonists increase CBF in brain regions of the mesocorticolimbic network only in patients with ICBs. They also found a link between dopamine agonist-induced changes in the mesocorticolimbic network and the expression of ICBs as well as their severity across all PD patients.

This study, published in Movement Disorders, highlights the potential of using ASL-MRI to predict ICB susceptibility in patients and improve clinical treatment plans.

More information: Daniel O. Claassen et al. Mesocorticolimbic hemodynamic response in Parkinson's disease patients with compulsive behaviors, Movement Disorders (2017). DOI: 10.1002/mds.27047 

Provided by: Vanderbilt University

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2017-10-impulsivity-parkinson-disease.html

Michael J. Fox's fight against Parkinson's

October 29, 2017

https://youtu.be/Xm9tKoudTVE

A time-traveling Michael J. Fox astonished Christopher Lloyd in the 1985 movie "Back To The Future" ... little imagining what his REAL future would hold. What it's brought is a challenge Fox has met with courage, resolve, and remarkable good humor, as Jane Pauley reports:  

Throughout the 1980s Michael J. Fox was the personification of youthful physicality. A decade later, starring in the hit TV series, "Spin City," his main acting challenge was to act like someone who didn't have Parkinson's.

In one scene he grabbed his foot.  "You're supposed to be nervous, so it kind of works," Pauley said.

"My first choice wouldn't be to grab my foot, as an acting choice, but it worked in the scene," Fox said.

But the 100th episode, he presumed, was the last act of his acting career. The season finale was called, "Goodbye."

He noticed the first troubling muscle tremor at the height of his career, while filming "Doc Hollywood" in Florida.

Pauley, who'd come down then to do an interview with Fox, recalled, "It's not like we were great personal friends or anything, but I felt funny, like something [was] wrong. I came away with the perception that you were distracted.  Something was on your mind. You were different. Am I projecting?"

"I may have been," Fox said. "If you'd come in that period, I would have been very distracted."

It was his pinky finger; it wouldn't stop twitching.  It would be a year before he found out why.

What did he know then of Parkinson's? "Somebody's grandmother had it. I mean, it was not a thing that I noticed or thought about as this 29-year-old guy."

"Did the doctor know who you were?"

"Yeah, and in fact, that is one of the few times in my life I felt like saying, 'Do you know who I am? This is ridiculous. You can't tell me that!'  This was a case when I just thought, this is preposterous that this is happening to me."

His slurred speech, muscle stiffness and tremors are the signature symptoms of the disease.

Fox's doctor told him, "'You have ten years left to work. They're working on some things. There's some things in the pipeline.' … Little bit of hope, but it wasn't enough for me. I felt very shocked by it."

"Things like 'degenerative,' 'no cure'?"

"Yeah, 'progressive.' All the stuff that now is just like irrelevant to me. I'm not about measuring how long something will last or Can I do this? and this terrible thing.  I mean, it's just pointless.  It's just another thing that you face and you carry on."

But there was a long, private struggle before he went public.  "I took seven years between when I was diagnosed and when I went public with it. So I took a long, selfish period of time when I just dealt with how it affected me and was concerned with me, and accent on me."

He revealed his diagnosis in 1998, and testified before Congress:

"As I began to understand what research might promise for the future, I became hopeful that I would not face the terrible suffering so many with Parkinson's endure. But I was shocked and frustrated to learn the amount of funding for Parkinson's research is so meager."

And in 2000 he went all-in. Fox formed a team to raise money targeted for research that would lead to improved treatments to slow, stop and reverse the progression of the disease -- and someday find a cure. To date the Michael J. Fox Foundation has raised $750 million from private donations. "Closing in on a billion, yeah!"

"It's predicated really on your impatience?" asked Pauley.

"Yeah, well, I mean, as happy-go-lucky as I seem to be and as at-ease with this as I seem to be, I mean, it sucks. I hate it! And I wish I wasn't in this situation, but it's been one of the great gifts of my life that I've been in the position to take my view of the suckitude of it and merge it with other people's view of the suckitude of it and try to find an answer."

"You've heard this 1,000 times, but if couldn't have happened to a better person."

"Yeah, I mean, I'm getting used to that idea!"

No one here would argue, at a panel of men and women taking part in a Fox Foundation online database called Fox Insight, where patients join researchers in the quest for breakthroughs.

Typically a late-in-life disease, only 1 in 10 develops "early onset" Parkinson's like Fox did.

Diagnosed about 25 years ago, Fox is the veteran in the room. Though Jim was diagnosed 18 years ago: "I was 29 when my symptoms started coming out, and 31 when I got the diagnosis," he said.

One participant, Claudia, explained the information she and others provide to the database: "You tell them, when your Parkinson's start? What was your first symptom? What types of symptoms do you get? What medications do you take? And the more information they get, the faster they'll get to a cure."

Fox says he's not expecting a cure in his lifetime, but he is expecting vastly-improved therapies. "And I'll take that in the short term.  The idea of finding that eureka! moment and the thing that cures it, I don't know that that'll happen in the next 20 years. But I do think we'll have therapies where it's a vast improved quality of life for people with Parkinson's."

Yet his own struggle is never far out of sight. 

Fox explained, "I mean, I'm also interacting with you in an intense way and I'm keyed up and I'm excited and engaged. And so that fires off all kinds of neurons and it gets all kinds of things happening. But the principle thing is the exchange, so I'm much less concerned with being still and not being collaborative and being engaged. I can make myself still, but I won't be as animated."

He demonstrated for Pauley when happens when he makes himself quiet, and still.

"But we're not talking," she said.

"I can't talk. I start to move."

"As soon as you start talking you start to move?"

"Well, because things are firing. I have to think. And the same neurons that fire my thinking fire my body."

Fox is more than just the face of Parkinson's; with two bestselling memoirs, "Lucky Man" and "Always Looking Up," infused indomitable spirit and optimism, he's the face of hope.

Jennilynn, another Fox Insight participant, said, "It was actually his books that got me out of the first two years.  I didn't plan for the future. I did nothing. I literally didn't even have a bank account, really. I had no idea how long I was going to be functional.  But reading the books, like, there was a level of ferocious positivity and fierce optimism that got my fire lit again."

Michael J. Fox is a grateful man. Married 29 years to actress Tracy Pollan, they have four children. And he's still a working and award-winning actor. 

Pauley asked, "Do you presume there's still special things ahead of you?"

"Oh yeah. Why sure, watch. Not the least of which, I think, is a breakthrough for Parkinson's. And I look forward to grandkids, and I look forward to weddings and I look forward to books."

"So, 50 years from now, do you think you'll be remembered for the 'Back to the Future' movies, or for a cure for Parkinson's?"

"I had a moment with somebody and they said, 'Someday there's gonna be a cure for Parkinson's and it's gonna be because of you.' And to me this was the first time that it really struck me. And I didn't -- and not that I took it seriously, but I feel part of something that is much more special -- if it happens it's much more special than any movie or any TV show."

http://health.einnews.com/article/412534396/38uN2ZjIS5S_ET1D?lcf=Hzf-KE6h-Xmcpvzwcdl3CuzbRmZ8XaTUdg3y3lN96pg%3D