Lois Miller was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) five years ago.

‘It made all the difference’: A patient perspective on research, with Lois Miller

When she was in third grade, Lois Miller remembers her school raising money, to support multiple sclerosis research.

By Researchers Under the Scope

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She wasn’t much for door-to-door sales, but hearing about the disease made an impression on her.

"The medication that I'm taking today would not have happened if we weren't doing this research 30 years ago," said Lois Miller.

Five years after being diagnosed with MS, Miller has resumed her career, can walk unassisted, and is living a relatively normal life.

But that recovery didn't happen overnight, nor was it easy.

Miller initially had 'incredibly painful' side effects with the drugs her neurologist prescribed.

From welts and burns, to peeling skin, headaches, and crippling abdominal pain, she was on the verge of applying for long-term disability coverage, when she was referred to University of Saskatchewan MS specialists working at Saskatoon's City Hospital.

"I didn't know MS medications are not covered in our health system," said Miller. "The only way we get better medications is through research.”

Miller credits Saskatchewan’s Multiple Sclerosis Clinical Research team and clinicians at City Hospital with bringing new medications and treatment protocols to Saskatchewan, and giving her a new lease on life.

"I wouldn't be living with the independence that I have today," said Miller. "It made all the difference."

Hear her story in this week’s episode of Researchers Under the Scope.