Sunday, March 30, 2014

Grateful Guinea Pigs

My friend Tristan Dalley designed this amazing logo for our 2014 Walk to Cure Arthritis team, the Grateful Guinea Pigs. The team name comes from what medical research test subjects are nicknamed: guinea pigs. I have a kind of rheumatoid arthritis that doesn't respond to the usual medications. So I get to be a guinea pig for orphan drugs. Orphan drugs are developed through an FDA program to fund research and development of drugs and biologics intended for the safe and effective treatment, diagnosis or prevention of rare diseases that affect fewer than 200,000 people in the U.S., or that affect more than 200,000 persons but are not expected to recover the costs of developing and marketing a treatment drug. The Arthritis Foundation works with the FDA's Office of Orphan Products Development to lobby for funding and research for rare forms of arthritis. Being on the cutting edge of medicine is scary sometimes, but I am a grateful guinea pig.

If you'd like to donate to the Arthritis Foundation through our team's fundraising website, please go to http://ocwalktocurearthritis.kintera.org/gratefulguineapigs

If you'd like to purchase some Grateful Guinea Pigs merchandise, 10% of the price will go to the Arthritis Foundation.