French telethon raises funds for muscle-wasting disease research
A total of €101.5 million was raised for medical research into muscle-wasting diseases during France's annual telethon, which took place on 8 and 9 December. Organised by the French Muscular Dystrophy Association (AFM), the fund-raising event, which is now in its 20th year, combines a 30-hour televised show along with tens of thousands local events to raise awareness of rare genetic disorders. The donations pledged by some 22,000 people will now go towards financing Genethon, a French-based laboratory for research and applications in biotherapies for rare genetic diseases, reputed to be incurable. Since its establishment in 1991, thanks to the French public's donations, the laboratory has successfully mapped the genes responsible for more than 700 diseases. Among them are neuromuscular diseases, prostate cancer, some types of diabetes, schizophrenia, and Rett's syndrome. The laboratory also develops gene and cell therapy treatments for rare muscular diseases such as Wiskott-Aldrich immune syndrome, Duchenne muscular dystrophy and Gamma-sarcoglycan deficiency. Some 30 clinical trials for 25 different diseases, each of which costs up to €3 million annually, are currently underway at the laboratory, according Laurence Tiennot-Herment, AFM President. 'Without the public's generosity, we would not be able to continue [this work],' she said.
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