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The career of the racing car driver Philippe S. ended in 1989, at the age of 33, when he had an accident going almost 300 kilometres per hour. Now he is tetraplegic and confined to a wheelchair.

"My greatest problem isn't really the wheelchair," he says, "but my dependence on others for all the acts of daily life: washing, dressing, writing, eating, 7 days a week and almost 24 hours a day. Total dependency."

When he heard about the ICM and the promises of research, the voice of Philppe brightened:
«We used to say, "nobody knows". Now, we know that we can find out. By bringing together the totality of what we know, federating knowledge, the ICM will permit research to advance more rapidly and patients to have realistic hopes. Yes, we must support the ICM project, because the problems related to the brain and spinal cord concern us all. No one can count on being spared.»
Tetraplegia is the term for paralysis of both the arms and legs; paraplegia refers to paralysis restricted to the lower limbs. Respiratory, urinary, sexual and digestive function can also be seriously affected. These disorders can be complete and permanent if the spinal cord is severed. They can also be limited and susceptible to improvement if the spinal cord is only bruised or partially damaged.

Surgery is used to treat these disorders, but is limited, at the present time, to repairing the "container", broken or displaced vertebrae or disks. As for the "content", the spinal cord, there is still no solution. Some attempts have been made to use medical and/or surgical treatment to limit cell death and the fibrous scarring that prevents the regrowth of damaged nerve fibers that would restore the continuity of the spinal cord. Extremely sophisticated research will be needed before we can cure these dramatic lesions, the victims of which are most often young.
       
The goal of the ICM, a research foundation recognized of public utility, is to support the development of research on the brain and spinal cord, in any way possible.