“We believe this study will move the needle and help patients and their families.” – Dr. Michael Kruer

As he embarks on a the Cerebral Palsy Research Network’s first publicly funded study into genetic causes of cerebral palsy, Dr. Michael Kruer, Director of the Pediatric Movement Disorders Program at Phoenix Hospital, hopes the landmark research will help transform patient care. 

Working as a dedicated pediatric neurologist, Dr. Michael Kruer is passionate about the young patients in his care and how to improve their treatments and therapies. 

Now, as he launches a three-year study examining how genetic factors connect with a CP diagnosis, he is hopeful the research could lead to better outcomes for many in the CP community. 

“We believe this study will not only move the needle for research but has the potential to impact individual patients and their families,” he tells the CP Research Network.  

Kruer is no stranger to people’s challenges with CP, having dedicated the last ten years to the study of genomics as it relates specifically to the condition. He received the CP Research Network’s first publicly funded (NIH) grant to launch his “Genetics Causes of Cerebral Palsy” study after approaching the network to collaborate on research.  

Five hundred participants and their biological parents will participate at Phoenix Children’s Hospital, AZ, Al DuPont Children’s Hospital, DE, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, OH, Seattle Children’s Hospital, WA, and Children’s Hospital Colorado, CO. 

“The beauty of working with the CP Research Network is it collects information that doctors and therapists enter as they are caring for people with CP at the participating sites,” adds Kruer. “It’s a wealth of information that we’re then able to leverage to try to take the genetics and make sense of it in a way that can impact diagnoses and treatments.”   

The study, which kicked off this month, in unison with CP Awareness Month, will compare the genome (the person’s genetic material and instructions) of people with CP with those of their parents, known as whole-exome sequencing analysis. If a participant with CP has children of their own, then researchers will track changes in the genome of multiple generations of the same family, which will be a first for clinicians. 

Until recently, CP was not known to have a genetic connection. Yet, increasingly research indicates that as many as one in four individuals may have a genetic cause for their CP.  

“Dogma in medicine is hard to change,” admits Kruer. Yet he remains optimistic that perceptions can gradually shift with sound research. Indeed, initial research linking genes to CP is already opening doors to new avenues of treatment for patients. 

“The most cutting-edge genetic technologies are exciting, but it’s only one side of the coin,” he continues. “If you don’t know how that technology relates to a real person and his or her symptoms, what they’ve gone through etc., then I think it’s an incomplete picture.” 

Dr. Kruer will share why genetics matter and detail the specifics of his latest study during a MyCP webinar this evening (Wednesday, March 10) at 8 pm EST. You can register here. 

If your family is interested in taking part, look for an invitation from your CP clinic at one of the participating sites. We will send you an invitation to our online consent application. Once the family gives their consent, they will receive saliva-based DNA sample collection kits.