Get inspired by MS Frontiers
Researchers are getting ready for MS Frontiers 2024. It’s the UK's largest biennial conference for MS research professionals. We caught up with Dr Emma Tallantyre and Dr Yvonne Dombrowski, who've been helping to organise the conference, to find out why this is exciting for the community.
What happens at MS Frontiers?
Emma: MS Frontiers is an opportunity for healthcare professionals and researchers in the field of MS to come together and share new information. We’ll hear talks from leaders in the field and from early career researchers too. Importantly, there’s time to discuss what the research means for people living with MS.
Why is Frontiers useful for researchers? And for the MS research field?
Emma: It’s exciting to connect with other researchers in person. It’s important to know what everyone else is doing so we don’t duplicate and waste resources. We can build on each other’s ideas and forge strong collaborations.
Yvonne: We particularly want the conference to focus on including and supporting junior researchers. It gives them a platform to learn, connect and present their work.
When I joined my first MS Frontiers as a junior researcher many years ago, I was blown away by the community feel. As a newbie to the field and the UK, I felt very welcome and made connections that still last.
Who attends MS Frontiers?
Yvonne: MS Frontiers brings together lab-based scientists, clinicians, and various health care professionals of all career stages. People travel from across the UK and even across the world to attend. It’s a safe space for unpublished data to be shared among researchers.
Emma: People affected by MS will also be represented at Frontiers. There are invited attendees, usually those involved with the MS Society research network. They’ll sit on our panel discussions, ask questions and share what they learn with the wider community.
The way researchers share information with other scientists can be different to how they share it with the public. So MS Frontiers means people can comfortably talk about challenging aspects of research, such as animal research.
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Why should the community be excited?
Yvonne: The theme of the conference is 'translation and impact', so speakers will focus on how their research will benefit people with MS. Some results are from the lab and might focus on understanding the condition, rather than a specific treatment. But we want to encourage all researchers to turn results into ways to make a difference for people with MS.
This year we wanted to have impact for people living with MS in the forefront of our minds. So, each talk will end by discussing how and when it might ultimately impact the lives of people with MS.
What do you hope will happen as a result of Frontiers?
Emma: I’m looking forward to connecting with colleagues, hearing new information and having some headspace to get inspired.
I hope we’ll be able to turn exciting new data into the next set of new ideas. It’s a real celebration of UK MS research and expertise. It is a think-tank for the next big project.
Yvonne: Great collaborations and new avenues always arise from these meetings, with people who share the same goal: to help people with MS. It brings together new ideas, strengthens networks, and supports upcoming new talent who will carry MS research into the future.
During and following the conference, we’ll be sharing hot topics, interviews and insights, so keep an eye on our social media and our research blog.
