LIVING WITH MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS (MS): COUNTRY MUSIC STAR CLAY WALKER REFUSES TO LET MS STAND IN THE WAY OF HIS DREAMS

According to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, every hour someone is newly diagnosed with MS, an autoimmune disease that affects the central nervous system and is the number one disease leading to disability in young adults. It usually strikes adults in the prime of their life, between the ages of 20 and 50. The most common form of this potentially devastating disease is relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS).

When multi-platinum country music sensation Clay Walker was first diagnosed with RRMS at age 26, his biggest fear was that the disease would halt his active lifestyle. Now, eight years later, Clay continues to record new albums, perform to sold-out crowds, ride horses and run on the beach with his daughters. His disease has also inspired him to become a voice - not just for country music fans – but for the hundreds of thousands of people with MS and their families across the country.

Despite living with RRMS, Clay has had 11 number-one country hits to date and has placed 31 titles on Billboard's top country songs chart, with 15 of them climbing to the top ten. Clay is slated to debut another album this Spring, right on the heels of MS Awareness Week, March 5-11. He is teaming up with the National Multiple Sclerosis Society during MS Awareness Week to raise awareness about MS and help rally support for research.