Think tank outlines 8 key steps to eliminate Parkinson’s

In late 2025, the Parkinson’s Foundation and the Fixel Institute at the University of Florida brought together dozens of experts to ask a bold question: What will it take to bring about a world where no one has Parkinson’s disease?

Now, that group — the Parkinson’s Disease Prevention Think Tank — has put out a paper outlining the key steps that will need to be taken. The paper, “Primary prevention of Parkinson’s disease: proceedings, the 8C’s and a position statement from the Parkinson’s disease prevention think tank,” was published in npj Parkinson’s disease.

The group identified what it called “eight Cs,” priority actions needed to eliminate the disease: Count incidence and prevalence, conduct studies, create policy change — this includes urging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to ban toxic chemicals linked to Parkinsons’ — counsel on risk, communicate clearly, form coalitions across disease organizations, apply cross-disciplinary approaches involving health economists and toxicologists, and financial commitment in the form of $600 million in research funding from the National Institutes of Health.

“Our goal is to draw attention to primary prevention by advancing research and shaping policy,” Sneha Mantri, MD, chief medical officer of the Parkinson’s Foundation and the paper’s lead author, said in a foundation press release. “ Our report outlines the actions needed on the individual and system level to make this vision a reality.”

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Parkinson’s disease is a neurological disorder defined by motor symptoms including slowness, rigidity, tremor, and balance issues. The causes of Parkinson’s aren’t completely understood, though researchers have identified several risk factors, from genetic variations to exposure to certain chemicals. Parkinson’s is becoming more common over time, which implies that risk factors might be increasing in frequency.

“This rate of change suggests that environmental exposures and/or lifestyle factors may be contributing to the development of manifest motor [Parkinson’s], combined for some with an underlying genetic susceptibility,” the researchers wrote.

The think tank members came up with the eight Cs based on in-depth discussions about what is and is not known about the causes of Parkinson’s, and on lessons learned in efforts to prevent other diseases, such as cancer.

First, they said, it’s important to count, using well-established structures for tracking how many people have the disease and how many are developing it over time.

Conducting studies aimed at teasing out the underlying causes of Parkinson’s are another key part of the strategy, according to the group.

Creating policy change focusing on known risk factors — specifically, banning chemicals linked to Parkinson’s, including paraquat, chlorpyrifos, and trichloroethylene.

Counseling on risk and communicating clearly to educate the public about reducing Parkinson’s risk, building coalitions to amplify messages, and applying cross-disciplinary approaches to understand the impact of Parkinson’s from different perspectives are also needed.

The group is also asking decision makers to make a commitment — specifically, a financial one — to secure $600 million in annual research funding from the NIH. According to the Parkinson’s Foundation, such an investment would help offset recent cuts to NIH funding.

“Strategic research remains our best path toward slowing, stopping and ultimately preventing Parkinson’s disease,” said Michael S. Okun, MD,  national medical advisor to the Parkinson’s Foundation and director of the Fixel Institute. “While disease-specific organizations like the Parkinson’s Foundation have invested hundreds of millions of dollars in research and clinical care for more than 70 years, stable federal funding is essential to translate scientific discoveries into meaningful advances for people and families.”