It?s MS Awareness Week (Mar. 2-8), which means it?s time to get involved and join the fight against Multiple Sclerosis. It?s been almost a full year since the last installment in my ?NBA for MS? series, a regrettable length of time that is no one?s fault but my own.

MS is a chronic disease that attacks the central nervous system in a variety of ways. There are four different courses of disease (relapsing remitting, primary-progressive, secondary-progressive and progressive-relapsing) that isn?t directly hereditary and is three times more common in women than men.

A number of different treatments have been developed in recent years, including popular medicines like Copaxone and Rebif, but a cure is still too far away for a disease that affects 2.5 million people worldwide, and is diagnosed in 200 people every week in the United States alone.

Multiple Sclerosis became a huge part of my life in the summer of 2004, and a few years later in the spring of 2007 I came up with the idea to use both my reading audience at RealGM and NBA contacts to make a difference in the MS community.

In the beginning, I formed a partnership of sorts with Michelle Bowyer, a member of Indiana?s ?Pacemates? who cared strongly for the cause herself. She provided me with some tremendous ideas, and informed me that the Bulls had held MS benefits in the past.

My initial goal was to have an NBA team host an ?MS Night?, where information about the disease would be prominently featured and a portion of ticket sales would go to the team?s local National Multiple Sclerosis Society chapter.

On March 7, 2008 my dream became a reality thanks to some friends in Milwaukee, who got together and put together a real-life ?MS Night? when the Bucks hosted the Blazers.

I cannot thank Tom Demeter, Konni Hibicke, Mary Hartwig and Laurie Schill enough for putting the event together. I?m proud to have somehow inspired them, but I?ll take no credit for the event. I wrote a few words?they helped change lives.

My quest has also allowed me to build some pretty special relationships, including an e-mail friendship with Ryan DuChene, co-founder of Caddies 4 Cure, an Oregon-based charity that supports both the NMSS and the local Emanuel Children?s Hospital.

On April 22nd, Caddies 4 Cure will host an event benefiting their causes -- An Evening with Darius Rucker, who earned fame as the lead singer and guitarist for Hootie & The Blowfish. I?m proud to say I own a few Hootie CDs, and if I didn?t live on East Coast I?d be there in a heartbeat. It?ll be a fun night, and the money will be going to a good cause?if you?re in the Northwest I ask you to please keep the event in mind.

If Oregon and Milwaukee are too far away, chances are there is an MS event being held in your area within the next few months. Visit the MS Awareness Week website to see what kind of event you can participate in. This year will be my fifth taking part in an MS Walk in my area.

I was also lucky enough to meet Grant Hill, who?s wife Tamia suffers from the disease, in person this January and found that we have the unfortunate link of having had MS barge into our lives at around the same time.

My experience with the disease pales in comparison to what some people deal with on a daily basis, but raising awareness, walking and putting time and money into the fight against Multiple Sclerosis isn?t just for my family, it?s for the millions and millions of people affected by the disease everyday.

In the two years since my first ?NBA for MS? column debuted, I?ve received countless e-mails from people not only supporting my cause, but also commiserating with me about the day-to-day aspects of the disease. Some of the messages have been emotional, and others full of happiness and humor, but regardless of their tone, they have all been extremely welcomed and greatly appreciated.

I look forward to helping make a difference over the next few months, and I hope you follow my lead in some fashion. There are many causes, charities and health conditions that need attention; it just so happens that Multiple Sclerosis is at the forefront of my consciousness.

Before I depart from this topic, and return to sports, the reason I have the opportunity to voice my cause, I would like to thank a few people for a variety of reasons (supporting MS, backing my cause and taking action).

Thank you to Becca Kornfeld, Kathy Burrows, Jordan Sigalet, Grant Hill, Channing Frye, the Milwaukee crew (again), Michelle Bowyer, Mary Schmidt, Joel Glass, Russ Bookbinder, David Randell, Michael Levine, Ashwin Puri, Fred Schwartz, George Gervin, Chris Reina, Ryan Hoak, Michael Benbow, Todd Essman, all my family and friends and most importantly, the person that inspired me to start this campaign.

Andrew Perna is Deputy Editor of RealGM.com and co-host of RealGM?s Radio Show. Please feel free to contact him with comments or questions via e-mail: Andrew.Perna@RealGM.com