Many scientists believe that the cure for Parkinson’s will come from a deeper understanding of what causes the disease. What is the reason that dopamine neurons begin to degenerate and die?
If the cause of the neurodegeneration can be identified, perhaps a specific treatment can be developed to slow, stop or reverse its process. Future treatment strategies may include the delivery of substances or genetic material directly to the brain. They may involve replacing neurons.
However, these techniques are in the earliest stages of development. For people living with Parkinson’s disease and their families, the progress is always too slow. But there are reasons to be optimistic. It is anticipated that many scientific advances will be translated into benefits for people with Parkinson’s, and so the hope for a cure is linked with true promise and great optimism.
For more on this topic, read the article below by Stanley Fahn, M.D., PDF's Scientific Director, originally printed in the Fall 2009 edition of the PDF newsletter News & Review.