Prof Helen Ford is a consultant neurologist with a special interest in multiple sclerosis (MS). Helen leads the West Yorkshire MS Treatment Programme based at Leeds Teaching Hospitals. Helen is also Honorary Clinical Professor of Neurology at the University of Leeds. Helen works with a multi-disciplinary clinical specialist MS team and is the Centre for Neurosciences Research Lead.
The Leeds Centre for Neurosciences is a leading NHS centre for research in MS. It aims to offer every person with MS using our services the opportunity to participate in research. This ranges from clinical trials in relapsing remitting and progressive MS, to studies of the genetics of the condition in diverse populations, epidemiology in MS and its impact on employment.
MS care has changed significantly over the last 20 years with major advances in treatment. I started my consultant role in Leeds in 1998 and set up the West Yorkshire MS Treatment Programme to provide the new disease-modifying treatments. My early research was in the epidemiology of MS in Leeds, and I established the Leeds MS register which is still ongoing.
Our neurology research nurses work closely with the clinical MS team to embed research in clinical practice. The research nurse team has grown over the last 10 years, and we now have four neurology research nurses and a clinical trials assistant. We have developed expertise in delivering complex trials in MS and we are a site for commercial and investigator-led MS trials.
This included the EXPAND trial of Siponimod in secondary progressive MS, which led to the approval of Siponimod as the only currently available treatment for this population.
We are currently a site for novel treatment trials such as STAR-MS, which is a trial of stem cell transplant (AHSCT) versus currently available highly effective MS disease modifying therapies.
Based on our successes in the MS-SMART and MS-STAT2 trials we were able to win our bid to be one of four U.K. hub sites for the new Octopus adaptive trial platform. Leeds is leading the Yorkshire Hub for this ground-breaking study, with Leeds and Sheffield recruiting in the first stage of the trial and Bradford, Mid-Yorkshire and York planned to join the second stage in 2025.
We work closely with the Leeds MS Society, who include a regular research update page in their newsletter. We highlight new studies with the eligibility criteria, and this helps recruitment and keeps people with MS living in Leeds up to date with research developments. I am also a scientific and clinical Ambassador for the U.K. MS Society and delivered the Stop MS annual lecture in 2023.
Our research also includes work on the impact of MS on people’s lives. In 2023 our colleague Charlotte Wicks was awarded a Career Development Award by the MS Society to continue her research work in employment and MS. Charlotte completed her PhD in the School of Psychology, University of Leeds and is now leading the INTERACT-MS study at 6 NHS sites.
This is an implementation study of the READY digital acceptance and commitment therapy programme (developed in Leeds) for MS health care professionals and people with MS. The pilot study of this therapy was recently highlighted in national media.
We have a Yorkshire Brain Research appeal linked to Leeds Hospitals Charity.
Through the appeal’s fundraising we have funded a Brain Research Fellow in MS and a Brain Research Nurse. All support for the appeal would be welcome to continue to develop brain research in Leeds.
Anyone wanting to know more about the MS research studies we conduct at Leeds or how to get involved can go to the MS Society Website to find out more.