How the Parkinson’s Disease Community and AbbVie Are Shaping the Future of Care

“You have Parkinson’s.” These three words changed Cathy Molohan’s life forever. At 38, she was already navigating the complexities of everyday life as a wife, mother, and business owner. Suddenly, she faced the daunting impact of her diagnosis.

Despite the challenges she faced, Molohan found resilience, “While Parkinson’s has slowed me, it hasn’t stopped me,” she shares. “It's taught me to listen to my body and to take care of myself because my body gets revenge on me if I don’t.”

Today, simple tasks, like rising from a chair, sometimes require the helping hands of her children. The everyday trials and triumphs in her journey highlight the reality faced by millions living with this chronic, progressive neurological disorder.

For over 20 years, AbbVie has invested heavily in exploring ways to reduce the burdens of Parkinson’s disease for patients like Molohan, recognizing the need for therapies that not only address its symptoms, but disease progression at its core.

“While the nature of the disease means that there is often no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to treating symptoms, we aim to meet the unique needs of those living with Parkinson’s disease, ranging from symptomatic to disease modifying approaches,” explains Jan Stoehr, Ph.D., head of Parkinson's disease biology, neuroscience discovery research at AbbVie.

Despite progress, challenges remain, such as lack of reliable biomarkers that can measure disease progression and how a patient may respond to treatment. Furthermore, current disease models often fail to accurately replicate human disease, impacting the reliability of treatment testing.

AbbVie is leveraging its legacy in Parkinson’s disease to tackle these challenges. Its teams are focused on unraveling the molecular and genetic changes within cells leading to the onset and progression of the disease.

Additionally, the company is advancing the discovery of novel biomarkers, disease models and cutting-edge imaging to enable early diagnosis, track progression, and evaluate treatment efficacy. Through these efforts, AbbVie aims to develop innovative therapies that may improve the quality of life for those living with Parkinson’s disease.

“We understand that we can't achieve this alone—it will require a collective effort from across the industry, academia and non-profit organizations in the global fight against Parkinson's,” adds Stoehr.

For Molohan, who was born in Ireland and now resides in Germany, she sees the need for global advocacy to address the many challenges those living with Parkinson’s disease face. She was instrumental in launching the first ever Parkinson’s disease call to action in Europe late last year.

“I feel very strongly about actively raising European voices, in addition to U.S. ones,” Molohan shares. “The problems we're trying to solve require a wide audience. We need everyone onboard and united in the call to action.”

Molohan is not alone on this journey. For Dr. Soania Mathur, advocacy has become a way to give back to the global community that has supported her over the years. She is a family physician based outside of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, but stepped down from her clinical practice 12 years after being diagnosed with young-onset Parkinson's disease at the age of 28.

“It's a privilege to be able to advocate for people with Parkinson's disease because there are so many that are voiceless,” Mathur shares. “We're still not getting diagnosed as quickly as we should be. We're still not receiving the amount of care that we need to optimize for quality of life. We're all here to end Parkinson's disease, and we all need to collaborate toward that end goal. Partners like AbbVie play a huge role in this and are poised to help in terms of funding as well as advocacy.” 

AbbVie understands that international collaboration is key to driving meaningful improvements in the care of people with Parkinson’s disease. With this, Stoehr and teams across AbbVie continuously engage with other researchers, health care providers, consortia and advocacy organizations to help strengthen care continuums around the world.

“Individuals with Parkinson’s and their families should always feel empowered to advocate for themselves, seeking beyond their initial diagnosis in order to get the best care possible, in the same way, our team will never settle in our pursuit of answers for people living with Parkinson’s disease,” says Stoehr.

Learn more about AbbVie’s commitment to neuroscience research.

References

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2. Weintraub D, Comella CL, Horn S. Parkinson’s Disease – Part 1: Pathophysiology, Symptoms, Burden, Diagnosis, and Assessment. Am J Manag Care. 2008;14:S40-S48. 
3. Chaudhuri KR, Isaacson SH. Morning akinesia and the potential role of gastroparesis: managing delayed onset of first daily dose or oral levodopa in patients with Parkinson’s disease. Eur Neurol Rev. 2013;8(2):82–4.