INDIANAPOLIS (July 31, 2018) – McCordsville, Indiana mother and Down syndrome advocate, Mari Kennedy, is helping accelerate breakthroughs in Down syndrome and Alzheimer’s disease research for her son, Ryan, with a few bags of corn. “I learned a few years ago that Down syndrome research received far less public and private funding than comparable syndromes, so I wanted to get involved to change that,” says Kennedy. “I have a big backyard cornhole party every summer, so I thought we could turn it into something meaningful for a cause dear to my family.” Kennedy and her friend, Amy Crell, are co-chairs of the first Bags for Breakthroughs cornhole party taking place this Saturday, August 4 at Scarlet Lane Brewing Company in McCordsville, Indiana. Proceeds will benefit LuMind Research Down Syndrome Foundation (LuMind RDS). Doors open at 4:00 p.m., with a round-robin tournament beginning at 5:00 p.m.
The women chose LuMind RDS because the foundation is aiming to enable independence and enrich community engagement for individuals with Down syndrome through high-impact research. The foundation funds research for Down syndrome to prevent Alzheimer’s onset, improve cognition, develop gene therapies and advance understanding. LuMind RDS also facilitates public and private partnerships to advance promising lab discoveries to clinical trials. Although life expectancy for individuals with Down syndrome has increased from 25 years to 60 since the 1980s, many still have unmet medical needs, including a risk for early onset Alzheimer’s due to an extra copy of chromosome 21. “100% of individuals with Down syndrome have an accumulation of amyloid plaques in their brains by age 40, the same pathology seen in Alzheimer’s disease,” says Hampus Hillerstrom, CEO of LuMind RDS. “By age 55–60 years at least 70% will develop Alzheimer’s dementia.”
Proceeds from Bags 4 Breakthroughs will go directly towards supporting LuMind RDS and its efforts to translate research into impactful therapies for individuals with Down syndrome.
Food and beverages will be available for purchase, and players of all skill levels are welcome. To register as an individual player or a team, please visit bit.ly/Bags4B.
About LuMind Research Down Syndrome Foundation:
LuMind Research Down Syndrome Foundation is dedicated to enable independence and enrich community engagement for all individuals with Down syndrome by identifying and accelerating high impact research.
Established in 2004, we have awarded $17M in research grants to fund groundbreaking projects at top academic institutions and biopharmaceutical companies leading to more than $30M in concurrent funding from the NIH, industry and other sources. LuMind RDS-supported research has led to the discovery of 10 therapeutic targets, the development of 3 Down syndrome-specific cognitive assessment scales, 15 interventional and observational clinical trials with more than 1300 participants and the initiation of several consortia. LuMind RDS is striving to significantly improve independence and health for all individuals with Down syndrome by focusing on four scientific research areas ¾ preventing Alzheimer’s onset, improving cognition, developing gene therapies, and advancing understanding ¾ and collaborating with public agencies, other Down syndrome organizations, and the pharmaceutical industry to rapidly advance new treatment options for individuals with Down syndrome.