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January 20, 2005

Advocate for MS patients likes West Wing’s depiction

BY MICHAEL STOREY
Arkansas Democrat Gazette

Fans of NBC’s White House drama, The West Wing, have been getting a lesson in multiple sclerosis lately. But is it the right one?

One of the series’ recurring themes is that President Josiah Bartlet (played by Martin Sheen) has MS and for many years kept his affliction a secret.

In episodes this season Bartlet’s disease has worsened, and the show’s emphasis has shifted to the budding presidential campaign of a Texas congressman played by Jimmy Smits.

One recent dramatic scene showed Bartlet, who was unable to stand, being carried off Air Force One in the arms of a beefy assistant. Another showed the first lady, played by Stockard Channing, having to help Bartlet put on his pants.

Rick Selig, division office manager for the Arkansas Division of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, said as Bartlet’s MS has became more aggressive, more people have called wanting to know about the disease. "This storyline has prompted many questions about multiple sclerosis," Selig said. "Some have even asked if it’s the same as Jerry’s Kids. That would be muscular dystrophy."

Selig said it’s important viewers realize that, "Multiple Sclerosis is a chronic, unpredictable disease that affects the central nervous system. MS is not contagious and is not directly inherited. MS is not considered a fatal disease and the majority of people with MS do not become severely disabled."

Selig says, "Bartlet’s condition has increased public awareness of the disease. They’re working actual symptoms into the story. We think that somebody like President Bartlet having MS and showing how strong he is and what he has to face is a good representation of how people can deal with the disease."

There is a link to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society on West Wing’s Web s i te at www. nbc. com.

Selig added that for more information on the disease, readers can go directly to the society’s Web site at www. nmss. org or contact his office in Little Rock at 1100 N. University, Suite 255, 72207. The phone number is (501) 663-6767.

Posted by Jo at January 20, 2005 10:27 AM