Update on the MS Trust's emergency appeal

'MS doesn’t stop. Neither do we’ has been the message of our emergency appeal, and of the MS Trust, since the Covid-19 outbreak. While the confusion and uncertainty of lockdown continues worldwide, MS doesn’t stop. So the MS Trust will not stop either.

Covid-19 did not only impact the MS community, but also the MS Trust as a charity. Demand for our services shot up, while our income dried up. Our CEO David Martin, wrote: “The Covid-19 emergency has created a massive challenge for the MS Trust to ensure that we are able to continue to support people with MS… In all of the highs and lows in the history of the MS Trust, it has never been this tough”.

Since it launched in April, the 'MS Doesn’t Stop' campaign has been imperative in enabling us to continue to support the MS community. Whether it's through our enquiry service, or funding MS nurses and Advanced MS Champions, donations have been a lifeline to people with MS.

As the country reaches a ‘new normal’, those with MS have been left behind. With disruptions to health services and delays in treatment, people with MS need support now more than ever, and our MS Doesn’t Stop campaign will strive to source the necessary funds.

Christine, who has MS, describes her ‘new normal’: 

Before, I was attending six-monthly visits at a London hospital for a clinical trial of a possible drug for secondary progressive MS. In this new normal, the visits have been replaced by a phone call… Meanwhile, I feel my MS has worsened, no-one can stop it and I’m increasingly scared for the future. I have held one Virtual Cuppa and raised some funds for the MS Trust because without charities like them, we would be lost.

We are so grateful for supporters like Christine, and all of our donors. The MS Doesn’t Stop appeal has raised over £48,000 for people with MS, but this is just the beginning.

With no government or NHS funding, your support means more to us now than ever before. Together we can ensure people with MS aren’t left to face MS alone.