Day 9 of 31 for 21 - Research, part one

Amy asked: "What are some areas of research that may help Micah and other kids with DS someday?"

I'm glad you asked. There are some great organizations out there. And unfortunately, I'm a bit pressed for time tonight since we are attempting to leave here in the morning to head to a corporate apartment for five weeks before we can move into our new house. This involves disassembling cribs, choosing toys and clothes, etc., so life is a bit insane in our house right now. All that to say, I'll provide the links later, but here are some interesting facts that are fueling some research:

1. Children with Down syndrome are much MORE likely to get leukemia than a "typical" child and they respond better to treatment.
2. Individuals with Down syndrome are much LESS likely to get other types of cancer.
3. Individuals with Down syndrome are much MORE likely to get Alzheimer's, and at an earlier age.

So, because Down syndrome is a triplication of the 21st chromosome, medical researchers are spending time looking at the 21st chromosome and the role it plays in all of the above. This research will help everyone.

But research to better the lives of individuals with Down syndrome is not well-funded (at least with public funding). There are some great organizations out there, though (and I'll get those links, I promise). Separate from that, past and current research has shown that early intervention helps our kids tremendously. That leads me to think I should probably do a whole post on Early Intervention / Birth to Three services and how that has helped Micah and his peers. That's for another day, though, as I return to the basement in search of the winter coats, boots, hats, etc., because we ARE moving to Minnesota and what we take now is all we will have until the rest of our stuff arrives in mid-November.