Columbia woman part of groundbreaking study for Black Multiple Sclerosis patients | Health

Yet, less than 1 percent of the more than 60,000 research papers on the disease center on Black patients.

Fewer than 2 percent of participants in exercise research studies for multiple sclerosis are Black, despite the fact that Black people have a more aggressive progression of the disease and lower activity levels.

So far, Bullock is one of the only participants from South Carolina, which has approximately 4,000 residents living with MS. In the U.S. the disease affects nearly 1 million people. 

Understanding Multiple Sclerosis

Bullock was diagnosed at age 21, just three months before graduating from Benedict College in Columbia in 1988. She’s rare.

“I’ve never met anyone that’s been knowingly living with MS who is a Black woman for as long as I have,” Bullock said. 

At the time, MS was thought to only affect White people, mainly White men, and there were no readily available treatments for the disease. 

And while the earliest recorded description of MS dates back to the Renaissance times of the 14th century, a successful treatment wasn’t found until 1993. 

The images Bullock depicts of her life before treatments were available paint a fragile picture, but definitely not lacking color. She recalled learning of her disorder as a senior undergraduate student at Benedict College, one of South Carolina’s popular Historically Black Colleges and Universities. 

It was homecoming weekend, a time wrought with long-standing traditions of overindulgence and school spirit, especially for the senior students. 

“I admit, I partied a little bit too much,” Bullock said. 

Bullock said that night, after partying with her friends Lisa, Jackie and Tammy, she decided to rest for the night at one of her friend’s house.