Last year marked 25 years since the foundation of ME Research UK. To recognise this, the charity launched ME Research Day on the 13th July.
The day – the 13th of July 2025 – was chosen as it marked the 70th anniversary of the outbreak of a ‘mystery illness’ at the Royal Free Hospital in London in 1955. This illness was later labelled as ‘benign myalgic encephalomyelitis’ in a 1956 piece published in the Lancet.
ME Research Day 2025 highlighted the importance of this first major research point in ME/CFS history. Since this outbreak, many important steps have been made in ME/CFS research thanks to scientists working together collaboratively to improve understanding of the disease, with a shared goal of improving treatment and, ultimately, finding a cure.
Therefore, the focus of ME Research Day this year is ‘knowledge sharing and collaboration in ME/CFS research’.
To recognise ME Research Day 2026, over the next week ME Research UK will:
- Share information on collaboration and knowledge sharing, and why they are both key concepts in ME/CFS research.
- Share quotes from researchers working on ME Research UK-funded projects on the importance of knowledge sharing and collaboration, and the impact these can have on research projects.
- Highlight ME Research UK’s Researcher Circle, which is now open to all PhD students and early career researchers working on ME/CFS projects.
