The latest update shows that enrollment now stands at 711,022 members, with 6696,802 of that number being military veterans.
I am one of the 145,760 former USN sailors.
I am one of the 159,980 veterans who served between May 1975 and July 1990.
All I did was donate blood and fill out a background study for the genetic research.
The following Letter from the Principal Investigator was part of the winter update.
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"Dear MVP Enrollee,
Your are part of a special group of Veterans ho have selflessly joined MVP's world-leading effort to understand how genes affect health and disease. For this we are sincerely grateful. To date you are among over 710,000 MVP enrollees.
We have entered a new and exciting phase in MVP. More than 30 teams of researchers are exploring the data and finding information about diseases that affect Veterans such as PTSD, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, heart disease, stroke, cancer, and eye disease. The results of these projects are being presented at national meetings and published in major journals - and the world is taking note!
In addition, the VA has joined forces with other federal agencies to enhance and use this wonderful resource. The Department of Energy is collaborating to help provide computing power to analyze this amazing data. We are also collaborating with the Department of Defense to pilot enrollment among Veterans who have left active duty. My son, an Army Ranger, is looking forward to the day when he might be able to enroll.
As we enter the holiday season, I want to thank you again for joining this effort to improve the health of all Veterans as well as all Americans. We have heard countless times that Vetras join MVP to continue serving fellow Veterans and the country. We appreciate your generosity. I want to assure you that the entire MVP team i working tirelessly o make the most of this world-leading resource.
Mike Gaziano
MVP Principal Investigator"
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I am so happy to have the privilege of being part of this study!
Veterans, it's never too late to lend a hand in helping others, so please consider lending a bit of blood and becoming part of this study.
Thanks, Mr. Gaziano, for taking the time to write that letter.
(See, I do read those updates.)
(smile)
