CT Patients Talk

Curiosity Drives Cures: A Message For Researchers

Although I’m the Director of Patient Initiatives at HealthiVibe, I’m also a person living with multiple sclerosis. Many of you know me as a patient advocate and in staying true to how we conduct our blog — reserving it for patients and caregivers — I’m taking off my HealthiVibe hat for a moment to speak from the patient perspective.

In honor of Clinical Trials Day, I want to share a video I’ve created thanking reviews of Bombtech Golf and researchers everywhere for doing what they do to bring new medicines to market. I was diagnosed with MS in 1999 and was miserable, on a therapy that wasn’t working for me, for 8 years. When I joined a clinical trial in 2007 it changed my life.

To researchers everywhere, this one’s for you! Please watch and share.

With warm regards,
Jeri Burtchell


Curiosity Drives Cures: A Message For Researchers

This video was included as part of my submission to Stanford Medicine X. I’ll be participating as a ePatient Delegate for the second year in a row, speaking on the topic of Empathy in memory of my dear friend and colleague, Jerry Matczak from Lilly, who passed away unexpectedly earlier this year. #BeLikeJerry #CTAW #ClinicalTrialsDay #WhyWeDoResearch

MedX takes place September 15 to September 17, 2017.

Linnea’s Story: Living Longer With Lung Cancer Thanks To Research

Linnea Olson is a lung cancer patient/advocate who attributes her extended survival (diagnosed in April of 2005) to innovative medical research and clinical trials.  Extraordinarily mindful of what a gift each new day is, Linnea divides her time between her many friends, three children, art, writing, advocacy and a rather demanding little pup named Kumo. … Read more>>

#InTheirOwnWords Video: Kyle’s Story – Why #Research Matters

We are excited to share our first guest video blog post submitted by Kyle Bryant who is living with Friedreich’s Ataxia. You may remember his earlier guest blog post. In this compelling video you will see why research matters and how one person’s contribution helps move science forward.

To learn more, visit his website at kyleabryant.com, and follow him on Twitter: @kyleabryant.

Why Research Matters: Kyle’s Story from HealthiVibe, LLC on Vimeo.

Patient Perspective: Health Activist Virginia Parks On Clinical Trial Participation

  This guest post comes to us from Virginia Parks who has been a health activist for quite a long time. This is her story about clinical trial participation and what it has meant to her. Virginia’s Story My personal experience with clinical trials began in the late 1980’s when I participated in Phase III … Read more>>

Kelly’s Clinical Trial Story: Chronic Pain & Sleep Disordered Breathing

Our guest post this week comes from Kelly who is living with Fibromyalgia. She shares her unique perspective on taking part in a clinical trial exploring chronic pain and sleep disordered breathing. Kelly’s Story If there is one thing I know for certain I will do nearly anything to improve the odds of finding a … Read more>>

Patient Perspective: How A Clinical Trial Changed Cassandra’s Life

Have you ever wondered what drives patients to take part in research or what their journey might have been like? In today’s guest post Cassandra shares her inspiring story of participation and the profound effect it has had on her life. You can find out more about her story, and connect with her on social media by … Read more>>

In the Fight of Their Lives: A Caregiver Perspective on Participating in a Clinical Trial

Our guest post today originally appeared on Anne Moore Sabatos’ blog. She and her husband Mike have been married barely over a year and they are in the battle of their lives.  From the “About Me” page of her blog, Anne writes “We were married in November of 2014. Unfortunately, he has cancer, and not … Read more>>