NORTH FORT MYERS, Fla. – A North Fort Myers High School track athlete is breaking boundaries and inspiring even her toughest competitors. Continue Reading »

TORONTO — Three years ago, Master Cpl. Jody Mitic stepped on a landmine in Afghanistan and along with losing both of his legs, he also thought he would never be able to play sports again.

But on Friday Mitic — who has run in marathons, snowboarded, hang-glided and scuba dived since his accident — was one of 40 chosen to carry the Paralympic torch in Toronto. Continue Reading »

Volunteer recognised for promoting spinal safety message

Disability Services Minister Annastacia Palaszczuk today paid tribute to volunteer Wayne Leo for promoting spinal safety and injury prevention to 250,000 children across Queensland.

Ms Palaszczuk was attending a morning tea at the Spinal Injuries Association Queensland at Woolloongabba. Continue Reading »

A California scientist was able to get paralyzed rats running again, but can he do the same thing for humans?

HealthFirst reporter Leslie Toldo tells us about a new treatment that could revolutionize treatment of spinal cord injuries.

This is all about 10 years of research and one man’s quest to use stem cell injections to cure these devastating injuries. Continue Reading »

The signaling molecule CD95L, known as “death messenger,” causes an inflammatory process in injured tissue after spinal cord injuries and prevents its healing. This discovery was published by scientists of the German Cancer Research Center. In mice, the researchers found out that if they switch off CD95L, the injured spinal cord heals and the animals regain better ability to move. Therefore, substances which block the death messenger might offer a new approach in the treatment of severe inflammatory diseases. Continue Reading »

When the cast of a new play plans its positions on a stage, the complicated process of mapping out its moves (known as blocking, and that includes not blocking sightlines for other actors) must allow for consideration of the rake, or angle, of the stage. Try figuring it all out from a wheelchair.

“It’s funny,” says James Sanders, a quadriplegic actor. “The stages aren’t always level, so I find myself trying to figure out where exactly I’m going to be, so my chair doesn’t creep around.” Continue Reading »

Aspire – supporting people with spinal cord injury. Continue Reading »

Being paralyzed and totally dependent on others gave Dr. Brad Berk lots of time to think.

As chief executive of University of Rochester Medical Center, he’d led efforts to improve patient care. But rehabilitating from a bicycle accident that injured his spinal cord showed him clearly that healing is about more than science-based treatments. To put your trust in caregivers, you need a caring connection and clear communication. Continue Reading »

Debenhams today became the first High Street retailer to use a disabled model in its advertising campaigns.

Shannon Murray, who is confined to a wheelchair, took part in a photo shoot for the department store last week.

The actress and model, 32, revealed the news on her blog: ‘I’ve been modelling for over 14 years but this was different,’ she wrote.

‘It is a first and as I was getting ready in hair and make-up, the potential of this shoot suddenly struck me – another small step towards inclusion and representation.

‘I hope the images challenge a few misconceptions about disability; it’s been a long time coming.’ Continue Reading »