Shows
RealTalk MSFrom the International Progressive MS Alliance Digital Tools WorkshopLast week, I was in Philadelphia, attending the Digital Tools Workshop hosted by the International Progressive MS Alliance. Welcome to Part One of our coverage! As we look around us, it's hard to imagine a single aspect of our lives that hasn't been impacted by the constant and rapid evolution of technology. Just consider the capabilities of the device you're using to listen to this podcast. This workshop highlighted the ways that emerging digital tools will accelerate MS clinical trials and enhance personalized MS care. In this week's episode, you'll hear Dr. Robert...
2025-07-0139 min
RealTalk MSEpisode 403: Moving Toward a Biologically Based Description of MS with Dr. Bruce Bebo, Dr. Daniel Ontaneda, and Kathy SmithLast week, the National Multiple Sclerosis Society and the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis convened a meeting in Dublin, Ireland, to dive deeper into what a new framework for describing MS might look like. There's still a tremendous amount of work to be done here. But, considering that whatever language is eventually adopted will affect every person living with MS, I want to keep you fully informed on this important work. So I'm devoting this entire episode of the podcast to sharing conversations I had with three of the attendees at the meeting in Dublin.
2025-05-2037 min
RealTalk MSEpisode 400: The President and CEO of the National MS Society Looks Back at the Past and Shares a Vision of the Future with Dr. Tim CoetzeeWelcome to the 400th episode of RealTalk MS! Over the past nearly eight years, it's been my absolute honor to bring you insights from leading experts, researchers, advocates, and, perhaps most importantly, from people living with MS themselves. And we have no intention of stopping here! We're excited to continue bringing you the information and conversations that matter most to the MS community. In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Tim Coetzee, President and CEO of the National MS Society, looks back at a significant milestone that took place eighty years ago. Tim also shares...
2025-04-2935 min
RealTalk MSMeet the new President and CEO of the National MS Society with Dr. Tim CoetzeeLess than two weeks ago, the National MS Society announced the appointment of Dr. Tim Coetzee as its new President and CEO. The MS Society's board chair, Peter Porrino, commented, "Tim is a trusted voice of the global MS community, a highly respected scientist, and we are excited for him to bring his transformative leadership to drive us into our next era to achieve a world free of MS." I thought it was important for everyone in the RealTalk MS listener community to hear from Tim and learn firsthand what his vision and priorities are...
2024-07-3030 min
RealTalk MSHow Digital Technology Is Changing the Diagnosis and Treatment of MS with Dr. Riley BoveIt's hard to imagine any area of our lives that hasn't been transformed by digital technology. That's certainly true for healthcare in general and MS diagnosis and treatment in particular. Dr. Riley Bove joins me to discuss the role that digital technology already plays in the diagnosis and treatment of MS and to share a preview of what's coming next. The National MS Society has named its new President and CEO. We're sharing the details! We'll tell you about some of the benefits that are being observed in the Phase 2 clinical...
2024-07-2330 min
RealTalk MSFrom the International Advisory Committee on Clinical Trials in Multiple Sclerosis Aging and MS Workshop (Part 1)As people age, their immune systems change. Their level of physical and cognitive reserve changes. They often develop additional health issues. They frequently experience changes in their mobility. And these are people who aren't living with MS. When you combine the health issues related to aging with the health issues that are related to MS, you end up with a sum that is exponentially larger than its parts. And when you consider that there are more people living with MS who are over the age of 65 than there are people living with MS under the age of 45...
2024-04-3029 min
RealTalk MSInside MS Advocacy and This Year's Public Policy Conference with Steffany SternYou've probably heard me say more than once that the things people affected by MS want most -- access to quality healthcare, affordable prescription medications, and funding for MS research -- are, to a large extent, all functions of public policy. The people who decide whether we get these things are our elected officials. That's why advocacy is so critically important. The National MS Society's Public Policy Conference gets underway on March 4th, and joining me with a preview of this year's conference is the MS Society's Vice-President of Advocacy, Steffany Stern. We're...
2024-02-2033 min
RealTalk MSRevisiting How the Proposed Framework for Researching, Diagnosing, and Treating MS Will Affect You with Prof. Tanja Kuhlmann and Dr. Tim CoetzeeThis week, I'm revisiting the proposal from the International Advisory Committee on Clinical Trials in MS that recommended adopting a new framework that leverages what scientists are continuing to learn about MS and redefines how we talk about MS, how we research MS, how we diagnose MS, and how we treat MS. This proposed framework holds the promise of taking MS care to the next level. This new framework was first proposed in a paper published in November 2022, and last January, I spoke with the lead author of that paper, Professor Tanja Kuhlmann. We discussed...
2023-12-2637 min
RealTalk MSEpisode 329: Revisiting the Pathways To Cures Global SummitThe holiday season provides me with an opportunity to indulge in what's become a RealTalk MS tradition. I reserve the last two episodes of the year to revisit the most compelling,and important conversations that I've had over the past year. This week, I'm revisiting the conversations I had at the Pathways To Cures Global Summit that took place in New York last May. The National MS Society brought together the best and brightest minds in MS research, the CEOs of major MS Societies, representatives from the pharmaceutical industry, and people affected by MS to...
2023-12-1948 min
RealTalk MSFrom ECTRIMS-ACTRIMS 2023 with Bonnie Higgins and Dr. Tim CoetzeeLast week, more than 9,000 MS research scientists and clinicians from more than 110 countries traveled to Milan to attend the largest MS research conference in the world, the 2023 joint ECTRIMS (European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis) and ACTRIMS (Americas Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis) annual meeting. In keeping with a RealTalk MS tradition, just as the meeting was ending and the thousands of attendees were heading for the exits, I connected with the National MS Society's Chief Advocacy, Services, and Science Officer, Dr. Tim Coetzee, to discuss some of the research that...
2023-10-1717 min
RealTalk MSGlobal Survey Results Support a New Framework for Describing MS with Dr. Tim CoetzeeWe've been using the same MS clinical course descriptors (relapsing-remitting, secondary progressive, and primary progressive) for almost three decades. As research has provided so much additional information and insight, is it time to update the way we describe, diagnose, and treat MS? The International Advisory Committee on Clinical Trials in Multiple Sclerosis has established a working group to explore this question. And, as a means of eliciting feedback from stakeholders around the world, a global survey was launched. The National MS Society's Chief Advocacy, Services, and Science Officer, Dr. Tim Coetzee, joins me to share...
2023-10-0928 min
RealTalk MSIt's Our 6th Anniversary! These Are the Most Impactful Conversations We've Had Over the Past Six YearsRealTalk MS is now 6 years old! We've covered a lot of ground in more than 300 episodes over the past 6 years. And I'm marking our 6-year anniversary by highlighting the most impactful conversations we've had in each of the past 6 years. We have a lot to talk about! Are you ready for RealTalk MS??! SHARE THIS EPISODE OF REALTALK MS Just copy this link & paste it into your text or email: https://realtalkms.com/317 ADD YOUR VOICE TO THE CONVERSATION I've always thought about the RealTalk MS podcast...
2023-09-2619 min
RealTalk MSSex and MS with Madelyn EspositoIt's not unusual to see sex and intimacy become unintended and unnecessary collateral damage in the day-to-day-challenges of living with MS. But it doesn't have to be that way. Madelyn Esposito, LPC, NCC, CST, joins me to discuss some of the common sexual problems faced by people living with MS, ways to maintain intimacy in your relationships, and tips for maintaining a healthy sex life. Kristine Werner-Ozug and Cheryl Weeks-Frey take you inside the workings of the MS Society's Community Review of MS Research Committee. We're also sharing important survey results...
2023-09-1931 min
RealTalk MSThe International Progressive MS Alliance Scientific Congress (Part 1)Last week, the International Progressive MS Alliance convened its fourth Scientific Congress in Vienna, Austria, bringing together nearly 200 international scientists and MS leaders, including people affected by progressive MS, to report and review the progress being made in developing new, effective treatments for progressive MS. In Part 1 of our coverage, we're taking you inside this Scientific Congress, where you'll hear from some of the top MS researchers in the world who participated in this game-changing event. We have a lot to talk about! Are you ready for RealTalk MS??! This Week...
2023-06-2054 min
RealTalk MSFrom the Pathways to Cures Global Summit (Part1)This past week, the National MS Society hosted the Pathways To Cures Global Summit, bringing together the best and brightest minds in MS research, the CEOs of major MS Societies, representatives from the pharmaceutical industry, and people affected by MS to update the scientific foundation of the Pathways To Cures research roadmap and set the global MS research agenda for the next 3-5 years. In Part 1 of our coverage, we're taking you inside this historic meeting, where you'll hear from some of the top MS experts in the world who participated in this remarkable event.
2023-05-0940 min
RealTalk MSHow the Proposed Framework for Diagnosing and Treating MS Will Affect You with Dr. Tim CoetzeeLast week, in Episode 279 of RealTalk MS we talked with Professor Tanja Kuhlmann about a new framework for researching, diagnosing, and treating MS that was proposed by the International Advisory Committee on Clinical Trials in Multiple Sclerosis. This proposed framework represents the next evolutionary step in diagnosing and treating MS. Joining me this week to talk about how this proposed framework will impact people living with MS is the National MS Society's Chief Advocacy, Services, and Science Officer, Dr. Tim Coetzee. For many people, the new year inspires familiar resolutions to start a...
2023-01-0932 min
RealTalk MSAccess to MS Medications with Tim Coetzee and Bari TalenteMultiple studies show that early and ongoing treatment with disease-modifying therapy is the most effective way to slow MS progression, modify the course of the disease, and maintain optimal brain health. Yet, for many people living with MS, these life-changing treatments remain out of reach. The National MS Society has released the results of a new survey that demonstrates that this problem may be much larger and more serious than you may have imagined. My guests are Tim Coetzee, the Chief Advocacy, Research, and Services Officer, and Bari Talente, the Executive Vice President of Advocacy for the National MS Society...
2020-01-2823 min
RealTalk MSProgressive MS Research With Tim CoetzeeThis week's episode focuses on some of the cutting edge research being done in the Progressive MS arena. Jon's guest, Dr. Tim Coetzee, Chief Advocacy, Services & Research Officer at the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, takes us through the work of the International Progressive MS Alliance. Jon and Tim also talk about Ocrevus -- the very first drug to receive FDA approval for the treatment of Progressive MS, and what that means for future Progressive MS drug therapy. We'll also be talking about a new research study at Duke University that will be taking full advantage...
2017-10-1027 min