"PUNKKIORGANISAATIOT" YHDISTYVÄT

[soijuv]

Kaksi merkittävää "punkkiorganisaatiota" on yhdistänyt voimansa.
Organisaatiot välittävät tietoa, järjestävät koulutusta esim. lääkäreille ja rahoittavat tutkimuksia puutiaisten välityksellä leviävistä taudeista (tick-borne diseases). Uuden organisaation nimi on TBDA.

Tietoa organisaatiosta löytyy sivulta www.TBDAlliance.org

TURN THE CORNER JOINS THE TICK-BORNE DISEASE INITIATIVE
TO FORM THE TICK-BORNE DISEASE ALLIANCE


To our Turn the Corner friends,

Over the past 10 years, your passionate support, your persistence, and your hard work have helped us grow to become a leader in the fight against Lyme and other tick-borne diseases.


Now, Turn the Corner is proud to share the exciting news that we have joined forces with The Tick-Borne Disease Initiative to create a powerful new organization called the Tick-Borne Disease Alliance (TBDA). Together and united, we will continue to dedicate ourselves to raising awareness, supporting research and promoting advocacy to find a cure for tick-borne diseases, including Lyme.

We look forward to your continued support as we seek to fulfill our important mission, and we hope to see you at our annual gala on May 16th at the Lighthouse at Chelsea Piers in New York City.

For more information about TBDA, visit our new website at TBDAlliance.org.

Below is the official announcement that is being released today, which explains the details of our new alliance.

Thanks so much again.


TURN THE CORNER FOUNDATION AND THE TICK-BORNE DISEASE INITIATIVE

JOIN FORCES TO FORM NATIONAL ORGANIZATION

TO FIGHT TICK-BORNE DISEASES INCLUDING LYME

NEW YORK - April 5, 2012: Two successful organizations dedicated to awareness about Lyme and tick-borne diseases, Turn the Corner Foundation and The Tick-Borne Disease Initiative, announced today that they have joined forces in a nonprofit called the Tick-Borne Disease Alliance (TBDA), www.TBDAlliance.org.

As part of its mission to educate the public about the alarming escalation of tick-borne diseases, TBDA is launching a national public awareness, advocacy and fundraising campaign. Lyme disease is the fastest growing infectious disease and the most common tick-borne disease in the country. Its increasingly virulent co-infections contribute to what is a major public health problem. Along with TBDA's efforts to raise awareness, the organization plans to embark on a quest to develop a reliable diagnostic tool as a first step toward eradicating tick-borne diseases. Working with others in the tick-borne disease community nationwide, TBDA seeks to help create a unified voice about this epidemic in order to make a difference. TBDA will be inviting other tick-borne disease-related organizations in the United States to work together in its efforts to coalesce a national movement around the issue.

"Despite how rapidly these devastating diseases are spreading, there is shockingly limited research being conducted, and misinformation and misconceptions abound," said David Roth, Co-Chairman of TBDA's Board of Directors and a Managing Director at Blackstone Real Estate Advisors. "As an essential first step to helping eradicate these diseases, TBDA will be supporting research to develop as sensitive and specific a diagnostic tool as is possible with our current knowledge. We will also work with elected officials to move tick-borne diseases, including Lyme, to the forefront of national and state public health agendas."

Roth added, "It's imperative that all of us work together - nonprofits, government agencies and the health and medical communities - to stop tick-borne diseases from spreading. Through a determined, unified effort, we can find a cure for the next generation."

At this time, there are no vaccines in use to prevent Lyme disease or the co-infections in the United States. Available diagnostic tools have not been proven to be 100% reliable. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) reports that people diagnosed in the early stages of Lyme disease and treated with appropriate antibiotics usually recover; however, approximately 10-20% of patients may experience recurring and persistent symptoms. There is concern that the actual number of cases of recurring illness may be much higher. More facts about tick-borne diseases can be found at www.TBDAlliance.org/getinformed/lyme-disease.

Turn the Corner Foundation was founded a decade ago by Staci and Richard Grodin, and The Tick-Borne Disease Initiative was created in 2010 by David Roth. Both Staci Grodin and David Roth were diagnosed with Lyme and co-infections. Their difficult experiences with ongoing misdiagnoses and searching for effective medical treatments gave them the impetus to become personally involved in this public health issue and to help others.

Roth noted that "awareness is extremely important for prevention, early diagnosis and effective treatment."

According to Roth, many sufferers of tick-borne illnesses are unaware that they are victims of these diseases due to a lack of understanding of the symptoms and because currently available diagnostic testing is not reliable.

"Lyme and tick-borne diseases are an escalating public health issue that may be on track to be the next epidemic," said Grodin, President of TBDA's Board of Directors. "Turn the Corner Foundation and The Tick-Borne Disease Initiative came to the conclusion that the most effective and successful way to get the word out about these serious diseases was to marshal our efforts and pool resources into a single organization that can take a leadership role."

On Wednesday, May 16, 2012, TBDA will hold its annual gala at The Lighthouse, located at Chelsea Piers in New York City. The event will help support TBDA's public awareness and advocacy campaign, as well as research to develop a reliable diagnostic tool. For information about the gala, go to www.TBDAlliance.org/eventspage.

For more information about TBDA, and statistics about Lyme and tick-borne diseases, and information about prevention and protection, visit www.TBDAlliance.org. Follow the organization on Facebook at facebook.com/TBDAlliance and on Twitter at twitter.com/tbdalliance.