The UK's largest-ever motor neurone disease (MND) clinical drug trial is reportedly receiving a "historic" £2 million investment from a charity.
The MND-SMART trial is intended to hasten the search for a medication that can halt, slow down, or reverse the development of the disease.
The funding, according to MND Scotland, will support the trial's subsequent stage.
Over 500 people have already signed up to take part in the trial.
A terminal illness called MND prevents the brain from sending signals to the muscles.
From diagnosis, the average life expectancy is only 18 months, and there is no known cure or efficient treatment.
In a statement, Dr. Jane Haley, director of research for MND Scotland, said: "This is the largest single research investment MND Scotland has ever made and will help drive the next phase of this groundbreaking trial, ensuring equitable access to a clinical trial for people with MND.
None of this would be possible if it weren't for our outstanding fundraisers, volunteers, and donors who support us on a daily basis. We'll make time count by working together. ".
Alex Treadway from Edinburgh is one of those fundraisers who completed the North Coast 500 by bicycle and raised £150,000 for the My Name'5 Doddie foundation.
Two years ago, Mr. Treadway received a MND diagnosis.
Doddie Weir, a rugby legend who founded the foundation, passed away last November at the age of 52 following a six-year battle with MND. The MND Association and MND Scotland are close collaborators.
Due to the charity's initial £1.15 million investment, MND Scotland is the primary funder of the clinical trial, which began recruiting participants in February 2020.
The MND association, with whom the charity is collaborating, is contributing an additional £500,000 to the trial, bringing the total investment to $2.15 million.
The trial speeds up research and lowers the number of MND patients who would be assigned to a "placebo" group by enabling the testing of multiple drug treatments at once.
It all began with "repurposed" medications that were already cleared for use in other conditions.
The trial, which will be based at the Euan MacDonald Centre for MND Research at the University of Edinburgh and run continuously for years, is accessible to the vast majority of MND sufferers in the UK.
According to Professor Suvankar Pal, who is overseeing the trial, "MND-SMART has already transformed the MND clinical trial landscape in the UK; so far, more than 500 MND patients from Scotland and the rest of the UK have donated their time to take part in this crucial research to find potential new treatments.
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