Introducing Project BIG
Only in recent years have we recognized that the classically separate domains of neurology, immunology and microbiology are interconnected in such profound ways. The answers to complex diseases like Multiple Sclerosis rest in our understanding of these interconnections.
We're pleased to introduce you to Project BIG — the only collaboration and research initiative of its kind. Leveraging the unique interdisciplinary ethos and world-class human capital of Stanford University and Stanford Health Care, Project BIG will produce clinical and scientific breakthroughs for MS and other neurological and autoimmune diseases. Together, we can unlock the brain-immune-gut axis and positively impact millions of lives.
PROJECT BIG — BRAIN IMMUNE GUT — AIMS TO UNLOCK THE CAUSE AND CURE FOR MS AND OTHER NEUROLOGICAL AND AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES.
Our approach
A BIG Difference
Flipping the conventional scientific model inside out, Project BIG positions the patient clinic as the central nexus for interdisciplinary collaboration and discovery. With traditional lab costs shifted to the clinical enterprise, the value of potential discovery for research collaborators is enriched, and samples are shared without walls to stimulate vital interdisciplinary understanding. Diagnosis begins with patients in the clinic, and so will key discoveries in MS. This unconventional approach to research and clinician-scientist collaboration produces a unique and powerful multiplier effect that will lead to extraordinary impact.
Producing BIG Results
Project BIG pushes the frontiers of research by capturing clinical, biological, behavioral, and environmental factors associated with disease prognosis directly from patients. In a realm dominated by animal models, which rarely mimic the etiology, progression, and pathology of MS (a disease that affects only humans), Project BIG stands out with its unmatched clinician-scientist collaboration and real-time patient data approach. With collaborators working across domains, our research and impact extend to other applications beyond MS including Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Epilepsy, Cancer and Autoimmunity, among others. We aim to find the cause and cure for MS and to improve clinical outcomes and patient experience along the way.
It's a BIG deal
Multiple Sclerosis is arguably the most complex disease ever studied as it operates at the intersection of the immune and central nervous systems — two incredibly intricate and complicated systems. While tremendous progress has been made in recent years across diagnosis, radiological imaging, immunomodulatory therapies and more, we do not yet understand the underlying mechanisms that incite the disease. The biological pathways leading to MS may begin in the immune system (within or beyond the gut microbiome) or the brain and differ greatly across patients. No two people have the same experience with MS; outcomes and progression are highly varied and remain unpredictable as yet. With an approach that tracks factors and progress with each patient as an individual control, Project BIG is contributing to a transformative shift that goes beyond personalized medicine to emphasize prevention, prediction and precision health. We invite you to join us on this journey.
