11 msfocusmagazine.org MS Focus Activities June 21 - Gainesville A Town Hall Q&A Dr. Aaron Carlson and Dr. Tirisham Gyang, both neurologists from the University of Florida, joined forces for a special Q&A session. “When there isn’t a clear diagnosis, we both agree strongly against starting any kind of DMT. None of the approved MS therapies would successfully treat another disease. In fact, it could likely worsen a different disease. In any case where a doctor doesn’t have enough evidence to make a clear diagnosis, more tests would be needed and your condition would need to be watched over a period of time. As much as a patient might not want to hear it, waiting is sometimes what is needed in order to get a clear diagnosis.” Sponsored by Teva Pharmaceuticals, Genentech, and Biogen. July 16 - Atlanta Ouch! MS Pain Dr. BenThrowerspent theJulysession of ourmonthly event series discussing a topic relevant to nearly the entire MS population. “We know that MS causes pain. Where that pain is and how intense it is will depend on a lot of factors, but something important to recognize is that not all pain is caused by your MS. It can be tricky to figure out. You may need to evaluate your situation when a new pain shows up and really try to figure out if that pain is from your MS, or if it might be caused by something else.” Sponsored by Teva Pharmaceuticals, Genentech, and Biogen. August 16 - Atlanta MS and Diet: What Do We Know? During the August edition of our monthly series at the Shepherd Center, Dr. Ben Thrower took the stage to discuss diet and how it can affect MS. “Statistically speaking, places where diets feature a lot of Omega-3 fatty acids show fewer cases of MS. Omega-3 fatty acids, commonly found in plants and fish, are anti-inflammatory in nature. A diet that is high in Omega-6 fatty acids, which are commonly found in vegetable oils and eggs, but lower in Omega-3s, is linked to inflammatory diseases.” Sponsored by Biogen, Genentech, Teva Pharmaceuticals, and Acorda Therapeutics. [TAKEAWAYS