J Headache Pain (2006) 7:109–115 DOI 10.1007/s10194-006-0275-5 HISTORY OF HEADACHE SECTION Frank Clifford Rose The History of the Migraine Trust Received: 4 March 2006 Abstract The history of a medical Accepted in revised form: 6 March 2006 charity founded for the purpose of Published online: 31 March 2006 initiating research into the com- monest of all human afflictions - headache. Of the 100 causes, migraine is one of the commonest, and in spite of the lack of interest F.C. Rose (౧) of the medical profession, this Founding Director, review shows how the pace of Academic Unit of Neuroscience, research rapidly increased as evi- Charing Cross & Westminster denced by the biennial International (now Imperial College) Medical School Symposia of the Migraine Trust e-mail:
[email protected] Late Physician in Charge, Keywords Migraine • Early • Department of Neurology, Symposia • Proceedings • Headache Charing Cross Hospital, London, UK clinics ate, including neurological training, I did not receive one Introduction single lecture on headache. Patients were naturally dissatisfied, so it was not sur- Although migraine has been known since the time of the prising when one such sufferer, Peter Wilson, whose Ancient Greeks (the term being derived from hemi-crania migraine started at the age of 12 and continued to his sev- – the Greek for one-sided headache), our knowledge of enth decade, contacted others with the same complaint. In its causes and treatment is much more recent. The main March 1958, encouraged by a pharmacist, George Ball, cause for its long neglect was the failure to consider it a Peter advertised a meeting for those with migraine in a serious disorder, because “everyone has headaches”.