Lacey Mom Pushes For Spinal Cord Injury Research

Lacey resident Matt Muckelston organized an event last fall for those like himself to bring funds and awareness to the need for spinal injury research. (Photo by Bob Vosseller)

  LACEY – A township mother continues to advocate for advanced treatments for those, like her son, who have sustained life altering spinal injuries.

  Camille Muckelston has gotten an education in the treatment of spinal injuries since her son Matt Muckelston’s injury two years ago.

  Since his Halloween themed car/truck show fundraiser in Gille Park last October, a lot has been happening with his progress.

  His mother was happy to report to The Southern Ocean Times that there has been “some wild and promising treatments that have surfaced. Despite a spinal cord injury being the most horrifying injury people can sustain, there is little camaraderie from our fellow man to cure or properly heal the injury.

  “I am hoping to raise and in turn, clear the process path of FDA approvals. COVID-19 delayed or destroyed a lot of trials and research plans and I was told the lack of support or pressure to find a cure is simply a matter of numbers,” she added.

  “A spinal cord injury includes diseases as well. Still, only 12-15,000 new cases a year with something like 300,000 or so living with a severe disability. These are U.S. numbers. If society wants to be greed motivated, the financial burden on it is huge and above many other health conditions of greater casualties, like $30 billion annually, I think.”

  She added that she didn’t care why anyone feels the necessity to push for the effective treatments “as long as it’s felt enough to encourage, support, demand that these treatments either in – or going into – the FDA approval process get the attention and graces the COVID-19 vaccination got.

  “Expecting spinal cord injury medical advancements to get the same attention and process as the vaccination is pushing it, but our government just showed us what they are capable of when pressured. We need to put the squeeze on them so the technology and lifelong research becomes priority and get the royal treatment,” Muckelston said.

  She wants to wage a campaign to promote further effort toward advances in treatment and technology for those with spinal injuries. “Keep in mind, this includes medical conditions like ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease), CP and MS. One discovery preparing to go to trial for MS and SCI treatment approval shows potential to cure Parkinson’s.”

  Muckelston noted the work of Dr. Jerry Silver and other researchers of traumatic brain injury. She is driven to make breakthroughs occur sooner than later.