JeanB; This is my story

I was diagnosed with PD in April, 2003. Upon diagnosis I did two things. I looked into local support groups and I called up the Columbia University Medical Center about joining a clinical trial. I found a support group nearby and attend it every week. My initial trial was PRECEPT 1347 which has since been discontinued. I then requested that I be put on any available trial. I am now on three. Please note that my regular doctor was not involved in any of these decisions. He only became aware of them during my yearly appointment. He wasn't too pleased but there wasn't much he could do. I have since come to believe that your GP is one of the impediments to enlisting more patients for clinical trials. Some of them may have difficulty with sharing control of the patient. For example, my PD doctor requested a certain medication for my blood pressure contrary to my GPs recommendation. When I attended the Parkinson's Disease Conference in WAshington DC I found a number of patients who would not join a clinical trial because of their GPs advice.

All the best,


Lloyd