Women and Parkinson's Archives

Women and Parkinson's

Cathy Molohan on the “balancing act” of work and Parkinson’s disease
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Women and Parkinson's

Richelle Flanagan on connecting with the Parkinson’s disease community
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Women and Parkinson's

Teresa Borque on diagnosis, identity and learning to say ‘me first’
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“It’s essential to create a workplace where chronic illness is not taboo”

Cathy Molohan on the “balancing act” of work and Parkinson’s disease

“We do ourselves an injustice by just suffering through it”

Richelle Flanagan on connecting with the Parkinson’s disease community

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“Parkinson’s disease feels like an ally of sexism”

Teresa Borque on diagnosis, identity and learning to say ‘me first’

7 famous women with Parkinson’s

Can you name a well-known woman with Parkinson’s disease?

“Look at us – we are here”

To mark International Women’s Day, we share our campaign highlights

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“Helping women with Parkinson’s know they are not alone”

Francisca Ruiz González on making women with Parkinson’s visible

“Finding information about being a woman with Parkinson’s was challenging”

Kathleen Reardon on diagnosis and being heard by doctors

“Life isn’t easy”: how coronavirus is affecting women with Parkinson’s

Four women with Parkinson’s share their experience of lockdown

The women blazing the trail in Parkinson’s tech and innovation

Have you heard about these Parkinson’s technology inventions?

“Incompetence, racism and prejudice delayed my diagnosis”

Manon Day on being a young black woman with Parkinson’s

“Recognising gender difference is essential for Parkinson’s research”

The research gap, revealed by neurologist Marina Picillo

“We need to be having more conversations about menopause”

One woman’s story about the approach of menopause

Women and Parkinson’s: menstruation, medication and motherhood

Our podcast shines a light on how women experience the condition

Women and Parkinson’s: “Being pregnant was scary”

One woman’s poignant account of pregnancy and Parkinson’s

Women and Parkinson’s: “My medication only works three weeks out of four”

An honest account of menstruation, medication and symptoms

“We are not just variants of men”

Our new campaign centres the experiences of women with Parkinson’s

Research offers new insights on a cause of Parkinson’s disease

Researchers in Denmark have shared insights on a cause of up to 95% of Parkinson’s disease cases. Using data on gene patterns and three mouse models, scientists at the University of Copenhagen found that a blockage to a pathway regulating mitochondria (‘powerhouses’ that generate energy for reactions in cells) causes a form of the condition known as ‘sporadic Parkinson’s disease’. When the pathway becomes blocked by a protein, damaged mitochondria accumulate, unable to produce enough energy – which in turn causes nerve cells to die. “Just like when people eat, cells take what they need and get rid of … waste products,” explained corresponding study author Professor Shohreh Issazadeh-Navikas. “But if our brain cells have this specific kind of signalling blockage, it means that the powerhouse of the cell – mitochondria – cannot get cleaned up after being damaged.” The team now plan to investigate the pathway’s role in neuronal…

Could dance help to treat Parkinson’s disease?

Dance training with music could help slow the progression of mild-to-moderate Parkinson’s disease, researchers at York University in Canada have found. As part of the study, the researchers followed 16 participants with Parkinson’s disease who attended weekly dance classes between 2014 and 2017. The research team compared them to 16 people with Parkinson’s who did not take part in the classes. The research team found that the motor and non-motor symptoms of those who took part in the dance classes improved or did not progress over time – while those who did not participate showed a continual decline. “Dance is so complex,” said study author, PhD candidate Karolina Bearss. “It’s a multi-sensory type of environment. It incorporates and stimulates your auditory, tactile, visual and kinaesthetic senses and adds an interactive social aspect. Regular exercise does not offer these aspects. There’s so much more to dance.”

Vineyard pesticides may be linked to Parkinson’s disease

Exposure to pesticides used in vineyards could be linked to an increased risk of Parkinson’s disease, according to researchers in France. As part of their study, the team used a health insurance database to identify farmers in France who had been diagnosed with the condition. They then compared these records with data combining an agriculture census and pesticide expenditures across regions of varying farming types, including vineyards. They found that areas with vineyards that lacked designation of origin, and spent the most on pesticides, were associated with a 16% higher incidence of Parkinson’s. “This result suggests that agricultural practices and pesticides used in these vineyards may play a role in Parkinson’s disease,” the researchers concluded, “and that farmers in these farms should benefit from preventive measures aiming at reducing exposure.”

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“It’s essential to create a workplace where chronic illness is not taboo”

“We do ourselves an injustice by just suffering through it”

“Parkinson’s disease feels like an ally of sexism”