photographist

“I wanted to be a doctor since when I was very young, a “doctor without borders (MSF)”. Everything to do with cells or molecules appealed to me. Very early it became apparent that I would be a scientist. I have a Ph.D in neurobiochemistry. I worked on neurodegenerative diseases, and in particular Alzheimer's disease, for over 12 years. Even though this was rather basic and abstract, my goal was to take part in research with the view to discovering treatments. Building a scientific career and taking care of a family at the same time is not particularly easy. Young researchers devote a lot of time to obtaining results by taking post-doctoral fellowships one after another. It leaves little time to start a family. In order to develop high quality research along with personal projects more stable positions are required.

As European scientific manager for LECMA, European league against Alzheimer's disease {“Ligue Européenne Contre la Maladie d'Alzheimer”), a non-profit organization which supports French public research and provides information on the disease, I work in close collaboration with researchers, organize international workshops and manage European research grants. Only the most innovative projects of international collaboration achieve financing. A great deal of progress in diagnosis has been made these last 10 years. It was found that cerebral lesions developed 10 to 15 years before the first symptoms of the disease appeared and that, once in the brain, the process was irreversible. In the near future the capability of early diagnosis will allow more effective courses of treatment.”

Maï Panchal
European scientific manager for LECMA

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