My name is Emma Doty, and this November I am walking 100 miles to raise money for the lab of Ron Davis to buy a High-Pressure Liquid Chromatography instrument (HPLC) to conduct research into ME/CFS.

(Adapted from Whitney Dafoe): ME/CFS (myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome) is defined by what is called post-exertional malaise.  This means that ME/CFS patients have a reduced amount of energy compared to healthy people.  But most importaintly, when an ME/CFS patient pushes themselves over this reduced limit, they don't recover like healthy people after some rest.  The illness gets worse, often permanently.  There are many more symptoms as well including inability to think clearly, muscle and nerve pain, unrefreshing or very poor sleep, sensitivity to colors, light, noise, and other stimuli that force the mind to use more energy than a severe ME/CFS patient has, digestive problems likely caused by nervous system malfunction that controls the stomach muscles, and many more.  

Before the pandemic, the CDC estimated that 836,000 to 2,500,000 Americans had ME/CFS; however, this number is difficult to calculate because most sufferers are believed to be undiagnosed, and the rise of long Covid, which turns into ME/CFS in a significant portion of people, has caused this number to increase. Twenty-five percent of ME/CFS patients are estimated to be severely affected, being bedridden with little to no functioning. This population has been shown in studies to have the lowest functioning of any chronic illness, comparable to end-stage AIDS or end-stage renal failure. There is no known cause or cure though researchers have found unique abnormalities in the immune system, circulation system, ATP (energy) production, physical response to exercise, and autopsy findings report dorsal root ganglionitis - a type of inflammation of the spinal cord. It is almost always a lifelong illness. The government gives ME/CFS research only a tiny fraction of what it gives to several less common diseases.Award-winning researcher Ronald W. Davis is conducting innovative research into ME/CFS. His lab needs money to buy a second HPLC because they are using their current one so much that it will delay their work to not have another. It will cost about $40,000.

I am a college student looking to go into researching post-viral syndromes, such as ME/CFS and long Covid. I would like to thank Rob Messenger, who walked 500 miles for ME/CFS research, for inspiring me to do this, as well as Janet and Whitney Dafoe for providing all the information and pictures for this fundraiser.