It’s been a difficult year for the SCI Community. Cuts to the federal government’s highly effective Spinal Cord Injury Research Program have required even more stamina and coordination than usual. But U2FP has led the charge, coordinating a consortium of SCI organizations to fight back and work towards expanding functional recovery research. The drain on federal research dollars have added even more gravity to our upcoming Symposium, where we’ve...

My name is Dan Olthoff and I’m the new Director of Finance here at Unite 2 Fight Paralysis. Kathy Christopherson retired from her role as financial manager last month and I am excited to pick up where she left off. One of Kathy’s traditions that I’d like to carry forward was sharing her year-end list of tax saving strategies as you plan your charitable contributions. While I hope you...

Today we are chatting with Dr. Michael Kilgard, a Researcher and Professor at the University of Texas-Dallas and the Director of the Texas Biomedical Device Center. Michael is a leading voice in the field of neuroplasticity, our body’s ability to structurally and functionally adapt its nervous system throughout our lifetime. We discuss the potential and limitations of neuroplasticity for functional improvement after spinal cord injury and the role of Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS), in particular. We also cover the aims, methods and outcomes of Michael’s recent VNS study, published in Nature, where significant functional recovery was observed in individuals with incomplete...

The never-ending saga of our Wisconsin SCI bill continues. The last month and a half has seen myself, Matthew and Jason doing a lot of backchannel communications with various lawmakers in the legislature to make sure our bill continues moving forward. While we are optimistic, we are still nervous about keeping our bill top of mind with key legislators...

In a moment, I’ll describe an ongoing spinal cord injury regeneration project that is being advanced, in part, by a small SCI charity based in the Netherlands. The part funded by this charity was evaluated for scientific merit by U2FP’s Scientific Advisory Board (SAB).

We wanted to let you know that our website, u2fp.org, just got a design refresh. The updated design now meets a higher level of ADA accessibility to make it easier for visitors of all abilities to engage with our work.

Today we are talking with Dr. Nathan Makowski, a researcher at the VA Medical Center, Case Western Reserve University, and the MetroHealth System in Cleveland, Ohio. Nathan's research specializes in the development of neuroprosthetics and the evaluation of their capacity to improve mobility outcomes after paralysis. Separate from his research roles at those institutions, Nathan is also the board chair for the non-profit organization, GiveAHand.tech. We discuss...

And why do I want to believe? Oddly, because I don’t believe. I don’t believe things will just work themselves out. I don’t believe that there are ‘adults in the room’ who know more than the rest of us and have ALL of our best interests in mind. And more pointedly, I don’t believe that cures for paralysis will materialize if we just let the status quo play out and simply relinquish our trust to a handful of experts.

As those of us here in the U.S. pause this week to observe our Thanksgiving holiday, we at U2FP would like to take a moment to express our gratitude to all of you. So many of you have joined or deepened your engagement with our work this year. In the face of federal budget cuts, you have joined us in...

We're talking with Dr. David Darrow, a researcher and the primary investigator of the successful and ongoing E-STAND clinical trial, which uses epidural stimulation and optimization protocols for delivering functional outcomes for the SCI community...

This February, we are adding a third day to our Annual Science & Advocacy Symposium in order to launch our national legislative campaign to restore and expand SCI research funding. We’ve dubbed this additional day the 'Capital Roll'...

When you roll into the Wisconsin State Capitol as a quadriplegic, you feel the weight of what that moment represents. You feel the long road it took just to get there — the years of navigating life after injury, the insurance battles, the medical complications, the days when showing up feels impossible. And yet, that’s exactly what we did. We...

U2FP’s 20th Annual Science & Advocacy Symposium is happening on February 15 - 17, 2026 in Washington, D.C. and we’re excited to once again announce the inclusion of a poster session at this year’s conference!

In this conversation, Dr. Michael Fehlings discusses his journey into neurosurgery, focusing on spinal cord injury and the challenges of balancing clinical practice with research. He emphasizes the importance of community collaboration and innovative approaches in clinical trials, particularly in the context of regenerative medicine. Dr. Fehlings also highlights the significance of understanding secondary injuries and the impact of Riluzole in spinal cord injury treatment. He advocates for a...

Here's a recent headline that you may recognize as a familiar rehash, Paralyzed Man Walks Again After Experimental Drug Trial Triggers Remarkable Recovery. Nothing new here, just a new headline, five months post facto. This is about a guy who was in the Connect SCI Study, a clinical trial testing NVG-291, an injectable peptide drug that is intended to promote natural nerve growth by unblocking damaged pathways...

Here's a recent spinal cord injury headline that is a bemusing Brazilian clickbrick: Brazilian Breakthrough Drug Shows Promise in Reversing Spinal Cord Injuries. Real headline, although it’s not like it ran in the New York Times or anything. This one is from Heart & Soul, “a reliable source for content, both print and digital, focused in the areas of women’s health, wellness and fitness:”

We had a whirlwind of a day at the Wisconsin Capitol. Last Wednesday, I drove to Madison to meet up with our advocates there, who showed up once again to push for smart SCI research funding. Just to be clear, these are the same folks who have already shown up countless times after so many...

In this episode, we reflect on the power of showing up—not just physically, but with purpose, passion, and skill. We're just getting back from Madison, Wisconsin, where our incredible advocates continue to show up for spinal cord injury legislation there. Our guest today is Adrien Cohen, the head of SCI Ventures - a philanthropic venture fund for spinal cord injury. Adrien dove into this work after his brother sustained a spinal cord injury, bringing his unique expertise in

We are once again eyeing the finish line in Wisconsin. To re-cap, our $5M SCI Research bill (SB99/AB92) has received unanimous approval out of both its committee hearings earlier this year. We also picked up support from a lawmaker who previously opposed our bill, along with several of his holdout colleagues, thanks to our willingness to engage in the lost art of compromise.

Research matters to Ian Burkhart. Check out this video that highlights the recovery he saw from Blackrock Neurotech’s Utah Array, which is a brain-computer interface (BCI) that is still confined to the lab. This kind of progress is lovely to see! And it’s why U2FP continues to collaborate, facilitate and initiate opportunities for our community to engage with researchers so that we pick up the pace towards functional recovery.

Today is the second of a two-part series on supporting general wellness while living with a spinal cord injury. We are once again talking to Mason Branstrator. Quinn Brett, U2FP’s Development Director and fellow wellness pursuer is joining me for this discussion.

Registration for U2FP’s 20th Annual Science & Advocacy Symposium is officially open! We are reflecting on where we’ve been and using that knowledge to forge our collective path ahead. We’ll be...

Every week, I see variations of the following sentiment all over the SCI interwebs: “But #research doesn’t do anything...smh.” Well, we at U2FP...

Today we are talking to Mason Branstrator in the first of a two-part series on supporting general wellness while living with a spinal cord injury...

Our friend Jesse Owen has been a C3/4 quadriplegic for 12 years. She recently regained some important hand function, thanks to a research funding bill U2FP helped pass in 2017...

I know it doesn’t feel like it sometimes but SCI research matters. Yes, it is slow. Yes, it is complicated. Yes, it often dies in bureaucracies. But the importance of functional recovery research is not an abstraction for me. We all age into disability, reduced function and even neurological diseases. Like many of you, I’m trying to...

I know you've heard about our big win last year, as we finally won access for e-assist handcycles in the Twin Cities Marathon. But today, their official newsletter - The Connection - published a story about it too! I wanted to...

Our conference hotel, the Renaissance + Residence Inn Capital View hotel, is now open for reservations. Secure your spot and lock in our special group rate starting at just...

That’s why for SCI Awareness month U2FP is highlighting functional recovery treatments that have actually improved people’s lives...

Today’s Headline Patrol considers a few recent SCI research news items, a couple of updates, one or two stories claiming to be revolutionary and several asserting “world’s first” status. We’ve got several prospective cell therapies, brain-computer tech, molecular nano scaffolds, and more, including an earnest measure of progress: clinical trials focusing on chronic injuries...

Today we are talking with Chase Cornelison about his work to understand fluid dynamics in the spinal cord after trauma, which could be essential in tissue preservation...

Today we are having a conversation with Alexander “Sasha” Rabchevsky. Sasha is many things: a professor, a researcher, a paraplegic, and a U2FP board member. He is also one of the old guard of spinal cord injury (SCI) research advocates. And he is frustrated...

Today we are talking to Drs. Dimitry Sayenko and Adam Thrasher about their SCI humanitarian project in Tanzania called “Peak to Peak.” Dimitry and Adam are long time friends and colleagues, and they saw Adam’s sabbatical at the Nelson Mandela African Institute of Science and Technology in Tanzania as an opportunity to both climb Mount Kilimanjaro together AND support the local SCI community in a humanitarian effort to provide durable medical equipment (DME) and training for advanced transcutaneous stimulation. The project is...

Our ability to accept and leverage compromise, along with your persistent calls and emails is what is making the difference in this legislative campaign. By continuing to raise your voice, you are giving this bill a real shot at passing!

Shortly after we successfully defended cuts to our Minnesota SCI Research bill, I wrote up a brief reflection and pitched it to a few media outlets here in Minnesota, trying to get some attention on the SCI community’s success at guiding research funding that works. One outlet, the Minnesota Reformer, accepted it and...

In this episode, we have another insightful conversation with Dave Marver, CEO of ONWARD Medical. We discuss their FDA cleared transcutaneous stimulation device, the ARC-EX, as well as their other devices in the...

Here are three recent headlines on SCI research, two of which are labeled as ‘breakthroughs’. Each appears to have a clinical upside, let’s dig in...

Raising money for the work U2FP does is hard. So, we thought, why not try and make it fun too? Why not try and make some beautiful music during this depressing time of SCI research funding cuts? Making music is something I’ve been doing on and off for most of my life and something my son Gabriel (who has an SCI) has been doing his whole life. This is how the idea to organize U2FP's first annual Rock to Restore Research concert was born....

Remember how I said in my last message we were going to call one Wisconsin Senator per week to support our bill? Well, things have picked up speed and now we...

Our Wisconsin CAN advocates have long had the mentality of The Little Engine That Could. And right now, we are at the toughest but highest point in our journey so far. Fortunately, we may have just received a big break. Last week, one of the Wisconsin legislature’s most devout naysayers to our bill, Sen. André Jacque, reached out to us and offered an amendment that would...

Today we are talking about bioinformatics with Dr. Abel Torres Espín. Abel is an Assistant Professor and Director of the health data DRIVEN lab at the School of Public Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo in Canada. We discuss Abel’s work and interests including the role of Artificial Intelligence in the SCI research landscape...

I have good news - thanks to your support, we have preserved the Minnesota SCI/TBI Research Grant program! As most of you are aware, budget cuts for research funding have not just been happening at the federal level, but have also been threatening our existing state legislative bills, notably Ohio and Minnesota. As I mentioned back in May, Minnesota legislators were threatening significant cuts to our highly effective SCI/TBI Research Grant program. This program has been at the forefront of developing...

Last night's Rock to Restore SCI Research concert was truly a special event. I wish everyone reading this could have been there to experience it. Those that were in attendance told me over and over how moved they were by the performances and the atmosphere generated by everyone present...

The Virtual Auction for our Rock to Restore SCI Research concert is live! Bidding has started, but don't worry if you haven't registered. There's still time to sign up and...

Earlier today I gave my long, fatherly plea for why you should come out to our benefit concert - either by coming to the show (happening tomorrow - Friday, June 20!), or by participating in our virtual auction...

There is a lot of history and emotion wrapped up in this event for me, and I wanted to take a minute to tell you about what it’s taken to get where we are - and why it’s so important to preserve and expand the legislative funding we’ve won...

We talk to Dr. James Krause about his career, his work with the South Carolina Spinal Cord Injury Research Fund, and how current funding cuts may affect state research programs. We also talk about tracking SCI outcomes and data over time and how that work contributes to...

Our Cure Advocacy Network efforts in Wisconsin have passed another threshold. Last week, the Senate Committee on Health held a public hearing on the $5 million spinal cord injury research grant program bill (SB99) we are advocating for. Thanks to great testimony and overwhelmingly positive feedback from legislators, we are...

I’m excited to race again in the Twin Cities Marathon this year as a member of Team U2FP. Just like two years ago, I’ll be racing with my friend and CrossFit Hopkins owner/trainer, Josh Nix. But I don’t want more wheelers to join us. And since I love a good challenge, I’d like to challenge the SCI community to fill the majority of our spots on Team U2FP

Today’s guest is Dr. Chet Moritz. We discuss Chet’s research, his history and connections in the TSS community, the role that his lab played in the success of ONWARD Medical and what is on the...