Anzmes

05/06/2026

INTERVIEW: Fiona Charlton & Emeritus Professor Warren Tate on new research showing chronic fatigue sufferers endure more economic / health hardship - Zac Hoffman
Thursday 4th June 2026 https://www.r1.co.nz/podcasts

https://podcasts.apple.com/de/podcast/interview-fiona-charlton-emeritus-professor-warren/id1442032897?i=1000771089376

Podcasts, archived interviews and Live To Airs

04/06/2026

The Mayo Clinic study found people with long COVID and MECFS often aren’t getting treatments that target their main symptoms.
Most are treated for sleep or pain—but not things like fatigue, brain fog, or energy crashes.

 U.S. prevalence of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), also known as myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME), a multisystem neurologic disease and debilitating chronic condition, averaged 1 million to 2.5 million before the COVID-19 pandemic. Incidence rates are now reported to be 15 times greater, related...

03/06/2026

Emeritus Professor Warren Tate and ANZMES President Fiona Charlton will be interviewed 9am, Thursday 4th June on Radio One 91FM regarding the recent study on health, labour market, and social service outcomes for people with ME on a health/disability benefit in NZ.

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) is a debilitating chronic condition characterised by persistent fatigue and multisystem symptom

28/05/2026

If you are wanting to make a submission on the Disability Support Services Bill, take a look at the below link to help you with understanding, submission help guide etc

We have put together a list of tools and resources that are useful for making a submission on the DSS Bill. This includes submission cheat sheets, plain language summaries and writing workshops.

A big mihi to the people who provided the tools! ⭐

Check it out here: tinyurl.com/yc5x3je4

28/05/2026

International ME/CFS Conference roundup: Setbacks and new hopes for therapeutic research
Written by Martin Rücker
May 26, 2026
At the Berlin event, researchers presented initial results of new clinical trials. All of the controlled trials presented for the first time at the conference failed to meet goals.
https://thesicktimes.org/2026/05/26/international-me-cfs-conference-roundup-setbacks-and-new-hopes-for-therapeutic-research/

More than 50 experts from around the world presented the latest findings in basic and therapeutic research on myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) and Long COVID at a conference in Berlin.

28/05/2026

Paywalled article:

While people living with ME/CFS face substantial health challenges in New Zealand, they also have to battle long-term economic hardship and fight...

28/05/2026

Background: Chronic fatigue syndrome, also known as myalgic encephalomyelitis, is a multisystem neurologic disease and debilitating chronic condition. U.S. prevalence of ME/CFS averaged 1 million to 2.5 million before the COVID-19 pandemic. Incidence rates are now reported to be 15 times greater, related at least in part to long COVID. ME/CFS specialists prescribe various medications to manage symptoms, but these medications may be underused in the general medical field. This retrospective chart review analyzed records from 571 adults with ME/CFS seen at a Mayo Clinic specialty clinic from 2018 to 2022, examining medications and supplements tried before specialty consultation.

What This Study Found: Medications such as SNRIs (like duloxetine/venlafaxine), gabapentin, and tricyclic antidepressants, used commonly in pain, sleep, and mood disorders, were the most likely options to be prescribed before consultation. Medications the ME/CFS specialists recommend for the condition’s common symptoms, including fatigue, brain fog, post-exertional malaise (PEM), orthostatic intolerance, or allergy/inflammation were less likely to have been tried.When it came to supplements, most (72%) of the individuals used at least one supplement, with vitamin D being the most common, followed by B12B-complex and fish oil.

Implications: The findings suggest potentially helpful medications used by ME/CFS specialists, most of which are well known and used in primary care for other diagnoses, may be under utilized to treat ME/CFS in primary care. Given the rising prevalence of ME/CFS since the COVID pandemic, primary care physicians and their patients are searching for options that may help. The study includes two tables with medications and supplements that ME/CFS specialists commonly discuss with patients in the clinic, organized by symptom category, along with a summary of the current evidence for each.

Stephanie L. Grach, MD, MS, et al
Department of Internal Medicine, Division of General Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota
https://www.annfammed.org/content/suppl/2026/05/26/24.3.DC1

Background: Chronic fatigue syndrome, also known as myalgic encephalomyelitis, is a multisystem neurologic disease and debilitating chronic condition. U.S. prevalence of ME/CFS averaged 1 million to 2.5 million before the COVID-19 pandemic. Incidence rates are now reported to be 15 times greater, re...

27/05/2026

People living with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis / Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) in Aotearoa New Zealand face substantial health challenges, limited access to support, and long-term economic hardship, a new University of Otago – Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka-led study has found.

Published in journal BMC Public Health, the nationwide study is the first in New Zealand to use linked population-level data to examine the health, labour market, and social service outcomes of people with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS).

Lead author Dr Nick Bowden, of the Faculty of Medicine – Dunedin, says the findings highlight a largely invisible population experiencing significant unmet need.

Co-author and Anzmes President Fiona Charlton says this points to a mismatch between need and eligibility.

“Current support systems are not well designed for people with chronic, fluctuating conditions like ME/CFS. Many are effectively falling through the cracks.”

Read more below 👇

https://www.otago.ac.nz/news/newsroom/chronic-illness-linked-to-hardship-study?fbclid=IwdGRjcASDesZleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAo2NjI4NTY4Mzc5AAEeEWu4YDsi98H1Efv8uTuz6YaMv5pxv-BUBrhPi6fDy3GFsutvyWaNvY1lOo0_aem_MmVv_vtFZrfIBR_f7uzS0w

People living with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis / Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) in Aotearoa New Zealand face substantial health challenges, limited access to support, and long-term economic hardship, a new University of Otago – Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka-led study has found.

17/05/2026

Study Links ME/CFS with Changes to Immune Cells.

A faulty ion channel function is a consistent biological feature of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS), providing long-awaited validation for hundreds of thousands of Australians living with the debilitating illness.

The new Griffith University research found a crucial cellular structure responsible for calcium transport, the TRPM3 ion channel, was faulty in immune cells from people with ME/CFS.

Read more below 👇👇

A faulty ion channel function is a consistent biological feature of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS), providing long-awaited

16/05/2026

ME/CFS is a multi-systemic illness, meaning it can affect many parts of the body — including the immune, nervous, endocrine, and metabolic systems.

This graphic highlights some of the symptoms and changes people with ME/CFS experience every day.

You can learn more about ME/CFS in our free booklet: What you need to know about ME/CFS

Download now: https://meassociation.org.uk/1n2w

Help us raise awareness this ME Awareness Week by sharing!