~ Research Funding Opportunity Announcement from NIH ~
Mechanisms, Models, Measurement, and Management in Pain Research (R01)
(PA-07-282) http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-07-282.html

There is some good news for fibromyalgia and other chronic pain conditions coming from the National Institutes of Health (NIH)! The NIH announced today, a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), requesting applications from researchers who have a special interest in acute and chronic pain conditions.

In this announcement, it was noted that pain is the most common reason for medical appointments and the associated lost productivity is costing billions of dollars each year. In 1996 the NIH established an initiative called “Advances in Pain Research”, for researchers throughout the NIH to collaborate on programs addressing pain. Congress declared 2001-2010 to be a Decade of Pain Control and Research. In addition, there was language in a bill passed several years ago, requesting a collaborated effort between NIH institutes to research fibromyalgia. In the most recent Pain Consortium symposium in April, 2006”, the NIH again stressed the need for more research on pain control and prevention.

Although some progress has been made in these efforts, the understanding of pain and the handling of pain control has been found to be inadequate. There have been many advances in research, with the recent findings involving brain imaging of pain being very exciting. Other research discoveries involving neurotransmitters and pain processing are promising, but incomplete.
This project crosses many of the NIH institutes, including (but not limited to) two important ones for fibromyalgia:

1. National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) (http://www.niams.nih.gov) which is the traditional home of fibromyalgia research;
2. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) (http://www.ninds.nih.gov).

In this proposed funding opportunity, a small sampling of the conditions recommended to be researched include:

1. Back pain and other musculoskeletal pain
2. Fibromyalgia
3. Headache
4. Neuropathic pain
5. Temporomandibular joint and muscle disorders

From the Program Overview, I would like to highlight the following paragraphs:

“The purpose of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), “Mechanisms, Models, Measurement, & Management in Pain Research,” is to inform the scientific community of the pain research interests of the various Institutes and Centers (ICs) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and to stimulate and foster a wide range of basic, clinical, and translational studies on pain as they relate to the missions of these ICs.”

And:

“New and innovative advances are needed in every area of pain research, from the micro perspective of molecular sciences to the macro perspective of behavioral/social sciences. Although great strides have been made in some areas, such as the neural pathways of pain, pain and the challenge of its treatment have remained uniquely individual and largely unsolved. Proposals that seek to improve the understanding of the causes, costs, and societal effects of both acute and chronic pain and the relationships between the two are highly encouraged. Additionally, proposals that link such understandings to the development of better approaches to therapeutic interventions, including complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) interventions, and management of acute and chronic pain are in keeping with the current translational focus of NIH and are encouraged.”

Below I have provided the text about the program, with details about the program objectives. To see the complete Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) in its entirety, use this link:
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-07-282.html

Thank you to the NIH!

cc:

Dr. Elias Zerhouni (NIH)
Dr. Stephen Katz (NAIMS)
Dr. Audrey Penn (NINDS)

Sincerely,

Shari Ferbert
President AFFTER
Advocates for Fibromyalgia Funding,
Treatment, Education and Research
www.affter.org

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