MRF

Morgellons Research Foundation

PO Box 357

Guilderland, NY 12084-0357

October 2007 Newsletter 

Dear MRF Registrants:

First, we would like to thank each of you for all your efforts on behalf of the disease and also for remaining strong and hopeful.   

MRF Financial Information 

The MRF hired a CPA firm to conduct an independent audit of our 2004, 2005 and 2006 books and records. The audit was initiated by the Executive Director and agreed to by MRF Directors. The auditors issued an unqualified opinion as a result of this audit. An unqualified opinion, which is also referred to as a clean opinion, is issued by an auditor when the financial statements presented are free of material misstatements and show a true and fair view of the operating results, financial position and cash flows, in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles.   These financial statements have been posted to our website on our Financial Info Page.

Summary of Income and Expenses
 
The Morgellons Research Foundation is operated by an all-volunteer, unpaid Board of Directors and officers.  We devote as much funding as we can to promote our goals of raising awareness of the disease and supporting scientific research.
 
Initially, the primary goal of the MRF was to raise public awareness of Morgellons disease.  We needed to take critical steps to inform the medical and scientific communities, as well as the general public, about the disease.  Therefore our expenditures in 2004 through 2006 were centered on activities which would promote this goal. With the help of numerous people with this illness who were willing to speak honestly about their situation, as well as numerous supportive clinicians, scientists, and media groups starting with KTVU, this disease was taken from complete obscurity to the point where it is now being looked at by multiple groups of scientists as well as U.S. public health agencies. 
 
In 2006 and 2007, our primary focus began shifting to raising money to fund researchers.  As a result of the increased awareness of the disease, in 2006 the foundation began to be contacted by a number of researchers who were interested in trying to understand this devastating illness.  The MRF has provided start up funding to several research groups, to date.  We have also incurred expenses related to mailing specimens to these researchers.  Unfortunately, research is very expensive and we have been unable to fully fund any of these researchers. 
  
After receiving formal funding requests from five groups of scientists, the MRF is concentrating on fundraising to fulfill these requests.  We are currently attempting to raise$250,000 to help support the proposed work of these dedicated researchers.    Please contribute to this effort. 

Research 

The Chairman of the MRF, Dr. William Harvey, has been working with veterinarians, a parasitologist, a mycologist, an FBI trained forensics Nurse Practitioner, a PhD invertebrate zoologist, and a psychiatrist experienced in infectious causes of behavioral change to try to understand the mechanism of this illness.  Dr. Harvey is developing a paper on his findings for submission to a medical journal.  Early in 2007, he did a detailed study of 25 Morgellons patients, collecting over 407 parameters on each, from laboratory values, to physical exam findings, to detailed medical history. All parameters were mathematically collated to provide a first "look" at a Morgellons "average."  The preliminary findings revealed consistent abnormalities in immune function, chronic systemic inflammation, multi-system involvement, and the presence of parasites.  Whether the parasites are causing the disease or whether they are the byproduct of a weakened immune system is unknown at this time.  This work is ongoing, and we will continue to update you on its progress.

Outreach to Physicians

We realize that some of you are seeing physicians who recognize Morgellons as a newly emerging, infectious disease, and are aware of the devastation that it causes.  If you are willing, we would like to ask you to discuss with these physicians the possibility of their getting involved to help us. 

Please ask your medical practitioner if he or she is willing to take one or more of the following steps:

1- Contact the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to share their clinical observations by emailing them at morgellonssyndrome@cdc.gov.  This information can be an important part of CDC’s current investigation into Morgellons disease.   

2- Publish their observations and findings in medical journals to help raise awareness of this disease.  

3- Contact their professional association and ask for help dealing with this medical condition.  

4- Email the MRF medical advisory board at Doctors@Morgellons.org with any ideas that they may have on how we can better raise awareness regarding this emerging disease. 

Registration  

Unfortunately, our registration page is down due to technical difficulties, but over 400 families have signed up for our newsletter in the past month.  As soon as the registration page is functional again, we will reach out to these families and ask them to register so that we can update our database.

Advocacy

As we mentioned last month, we have developed a brochure that you can distribute which describes the disease and the research opportunities.  Please respond to this email to request a brochure and be sure to give us your mailing address.  We can mail you two copies for free.  We encourage you to make additional copies and give them to your friends and family and distribute them throughout your neighborhood, in stores, doctors' offices, and on bulletin boards.  This is an easy way to help us spread awareness of the disease.

Please see our advocacy page for other ways that you can get involved.

Thank you for your continuing support of the foundation.

William T. Harvey, M.D., M.P.H., M.S., Chairman
Mary M. Leitao, Executive Director
Douglas Buckner, Ph.D., Associate Director
Janelle Fossen, Secretary
Dale Cowher, CPA, Treasurer
Roy Houchins
Board of Directors
Ken Cowles, Director Media and PR
Morgellons Research Foundation