The primary goal of Global Alopecia Mission is to promote and facilitate research for a treatment and a cure for Alopecia Areata. The medical and research community have overlooked and underestimated the seriousness of Alopecia Areata as an auto-immune disease.
Despite the high frequency of this disease in the general population, AA has largely been classified a cosmetic disorder with self-esteem implications and assigned to a field of medicine that concentrates on treating its cosmetic manifestations. Consequently, research to identify, understand, treat and cure its underlying immunological basis has been minimal.
To remedy this dilemma, Global Alopecia Mission is currently assembling the best multi-discipline research advisory collaboration possible to assess, organize and implement the most effective and comprehensive Alopecia Areata research initiative to date.
Based on our collaborative assessment, we intend to unify the most relevant fields of research (ie. immunology, endocrinology, cellular biology, genetics, dermatology, nutritional sciences, etc.) under our umbrella to work toward well-defined, complementary, and sequential research goals leading to a treatment and cure for Alopecia Areata. Please see the following general outline.
Global Alopecia Mission Research Initiative Outline
Global Alopecia Mission is a non profit voluntary health organization focused exclusively on promoting research to advance the Science and Medicine of Alopecia Areata. Research will lead to discovery of the causes, prevention, and treatments to cure this uniquely challenging and profoundly neglected autoimmune disease.
Our Overarching Objectives Are To:
- Highlight this medically neglected and underserved autoimmune disease;
- Accelerate the pace of medical research on Alopecia Areata;
- Insert Alopecia Areata into the national and international health care agenda.
- Resolve Alopecia Areata through an effective treatment(s) and cure.
Immediate Goals:
AA Research Roundtable – assemble leading researchers from multiple disciplines and/or working multiple autoimmune diseases to a brainstorming workshop to be held in Chicago, IL (USA) to help establish a comprehensive up-to-date multidisciplinary road map for AA research for the next 5 years. Brainstorming Team will also judge IDEAS competition as outlined below.
AA Research Challenge – issue notice to leading researchers/universities worldwide of research challenge competition to propose research program/topics for AA. Award up to 10 small grants (10,000) to the most relevant and innovative research IDEAS at the AA Research Roundtable.
GAM Research Roadmap – Release GAM Research Initiative Roadmap identifying specific research topics to be funded based on workshop consensus and challenges competition input.
Long Term (From 2012 onwards):
- To build a GAM Research Program that will fund researchers at leading institutions worldwide to address gaps in understanding the causes and consequences of Alopecia Areata as well as the field’s most critical issues.
- To lead special research initiatives focused on bench-to-bedside translational research.
- To promote initiatives that will accelerate the clinical trial pipeline to cure AA.
- To develop the most comprehensive Alopecia Areata patient database available.
- To routinely inform our membership, the public and the scientific community of progress.
- To advocate for increased investment from local, state, federal, and international agencies in research for AA.
- To advocate for increased public and corporate investment in research for AA.