In February, Lorraine Johnson was honored to speak before annual conference of the American Association for the Advancement of Science– one of the most mainstream prestigious events of the year for all types of scientists and science reporters.  It was a pivotal moment for Lyme disease, which took the spotlight on a panel discussing the potential of big data and MyLymeData as a game changer for Lyme disease.

The panel included DJ Patil, Chief Data Scientist from the White House Office of Science and Technology and Dr. John Aucott from Johns Hopkins Medicine. Because the AAAS did not record speeches, I am posting a powerpoint with audio of my talk, Big Data and Patient Powered Research here.

The only way we are going to increase our understanding of chronic Lyme disease and be able to answer the important questions that directly impact patients’ lives is through big data projects like MyLymeData. It is going to take individual patients coming together and sharing their information that will accelerate research to figure out this disease.