Quest Winter 2017 | Muscular Dystrophy Association

Featured Articles

Joe Akmakjian Continues as MDA National Ambassador in 2017

“2016 was such a powerful year with so many wonderful memories. I met a lot of amazing individuals and families from all over who are so excited about the direction we are headed — just like me. I also met so many staff who have a great passion for this cause. From top to bottom, this organization never ceases to amaze me.” — Joe Akmakjian

Running Together

When Bryant Donnowitz first got involved with MDA, he didn’t have a direct connection to neuromuscular diseases. He was interested in helping MDA’s cause, but he didn’t know where to start, so he contacted his friend, April Tunnicliff, who is now MDA Team Momentum’s senior national endurance manager.

Learning by Heart

Keilondi Johnson, a 39-year-old teacher from Virginia, who has spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), always wanted to work with children. When she got to college, she thought she wanted to go on to study the law and become a family lawyer. However, that changed when Johnson took on an internship at a campus day care center as part of her studies.

The Latest from the Lab

You probably enjoy visiting MDA's Strongly blog to read personal stories from people living with neuromuscular diseases — but did you know you’ll also find updates and information straight from the mouths of the researchers who are working to uncover scientific and medical breakthroughs? Here are some excerpts from Strongly.

Passion Projects: Q&A with Author and Filmmaker Crystal Emery

Author, producer and filmmaker Crystal Emery, who has Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT), wrote and directed her first play in the fifth grade, and she hasn’t stopped telling stories since then. She’s currently touring the country with her documentary film, “Black Women in Medicine,” which can be seen on PBS, and her foundation, URU, The Right To Be Inc. Quest spoke with Emery over the phone about the film, her passion for the arts and more.

Progress Now Winter 2017

Osaka-based Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma’s new drug application for the drug edaravone (brand name Radicava) to treat people with ALS has been accepted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).An FDA decision on the drug is expected by June 16, 2017. Edaravone was approved last year in Japan and South Korea for the treatment of ALS and has been approved for the treatment of stroke since 2001.

Spreading Love

In 2004, when Stevie Hopkins, a 33-year-old entrepreneur who has spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) and his sister, Annie, who also had SMA, put a wheelchair heart design on a pub crawl T-shirt, he never imagined it would eventually turn into a business that employs himself and more than 20 other employees, including a half-dozen employees with disabilities.

In Good Hands

All parents need time to themselves, but for BJ Mirabile of Winchester, Mass., finding child care for her daughter Katie, who has spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), often proved difficult. “When she was younger, we had some neighborhood sitters and sitters through early intervention,” Mirabile says. But early intervention services are for babies and toddlers with developmental delays or disabilities. Now Katie is older, and she uses a power wheelchair, BiPAP (bilevel positive airflow pressure) machine and MIC-Key gastric feeding tube.

Achieving Through Adversity

I have read many articles about people succeeding despite their disabilities, but I believe people can succeed because of their disabilities. The adversity I faced navigating academic and professional challenges as a person with a disability paved the way for the satisfying life I enjoy now. Here I sit, a law clerk for a federal judge preparing to begin private practice at a patent litigation firm, living with a cat in my own apartment and supported by friends and family. The bumps in the road made me a tougher, smarter person and helped me sharpen the skills I use every day as an attorney.

Advocate U

For many young adults, the college experience is a rite of passage and an exciting time for growth. This time comes with additional challenges and opportunities for the 9 percent of college students with disabilities in the United States. For some, it’s not just about the lessons that come from living away from their parents and families, making decisions about their future or navigating the world on their own. It’s also a chance to learn to advocate for themselves and others.

MDA Muscle Walk: Mary’s Marathon

It took a while for Colleen Stratton and her husband, Charlie, to process the news that their daughter, Mary Grace, who is now 5, was diagnosed with limb-girdle muscular dystrophy (LGMD) in June 2014. “The shock was settling in, and I was almost in denial,” Colleen says. But in the year that followed, the Strattons found support by engaging with their local MDA community. They made their MDA Muscle Walk debut with a bang at the 2016 Muscle Walk of Cincinnati last April, where their team, Mary’s Marathon, was more than 100 strong.

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