Madam Speaker, I am very pleased to have the opportunity to discuss multiple sclerosis and the way in which new research and actions can give hope to Canadians living with multiple sclerosis.
MS is a devastating illness, usually striking young adults who may lose the ability to move and speak throughout the course of the illness. Canada has one of the highest rates of multiple sclerosis in the world. Every day three more people in Canada are diagnosed with MS.
It is with the goal of alleviating the suffering of Canadians with MS that the Government of Canada has invested, through the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, CIHR, over $49 million to date on MS research. It is through investments in research and innovation that our best hopes lie in improving treatments and someday soon finding a cure.
On August 26, CIHR, in collaboration with the MS Society of Canada, convened a meeting of leading North American experts in MS to discuss these priorities. This expert meeting reviewed the evidence, including the potential links between chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency, or what is referred to as CCSVI, and MS. The unanimous decision was that it would be premature to support pan-Canadian clinical trials on the Zamboni procedure.
Just last week at an MS conference in Gothenburg, Sweden, Dr. Zamboni himself indicated very clearly that more research is needed before patients proceed with this surgery.
We are currently awaiting the results of seven clinical diagnostic trials being funded by the MS societies of Canada and the U.S., which are currently under way, before making a decision on whether to support therapeutic clinical trials on the Zamboni procedure.
If the medical experts agree that there is sufficient evidence to warrant clinical trials, then our government will fund them.