LEARN 2025 – Dr Caroline McHutchison’s blog for MND Scotland

In this blog , Dr Caroline McHutchison from the University of Stirling discusses her motivations for undertaking MND research to understand cognitive and behavioural changes in MND. Caroline also recently presented at the LEARN event in Glasgow at Celtic Park on Thursday, 11 September 2025.

Can you tell us about yourself?

I’m a Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Stirling. My journey began in Australia, where I completed my undergraduate degree in Psychology at Curtin University in Perth, Western Australia, before moving to Scotland for my MSc and PhD at the University of Edinburgh.

I specialise in neuropsychology – how the brain relates to thinking, behaviour, and emotions.

Before I began to research MND, I was involved in projects that looked at traumatic brain injury in children and then long-term difficulties in thinking skills in people with a stroke. I’ve now been researching MND for 10 years. Outside of work, I love exploring Scotland’s hills and rivers, trying new sewing projects, and pottering in the garden (mostly wondering if it’s a plant or a weed that I’m nurturing!).

What motivated you to pursue MND research?

I first became interested in MND during my MSc at the University of Edinburgh, where I was inspired by Professor Sharon Abrahams. Her work showed that in addition to the physical symptoms associated with MND, some people also experience difficulties in their thinking (we typically refer to this as cognition) and changes in their behaviour.

For some people living with MND, this means that it can be difficult to make decisions, to understand how others are feeling or what they are thinking, or to start and continue with everyday activities. These symptoms can be upsetting not only for the person living with MND, but also their family and friends.

Although researchers and clinicians were beginning to recognise the importance of cognition and behaviour in MND, I was also very aware of how much there was for us still to learn in order to better understand things when, how and why these symptoms develop. Conversations about this with Professor Abrahams motivated me to pursue a PhD, in which I explored whether people who were living with MND and who had a personal or family history of certain psychiatric disorders were more likely to experience difficulties with cognition and changes in their behaviour.

Since then, I’ve continued to pursue MND research with two post-doctoral fellowships, and as part of my current role as Lecturer in Psychology. There is still so much we don’t know, and still so many questions that I want to answer.

What are you doing currently/working on in terms of MND research?

My current research focuses on understanding when difficulties with thinking and changes in behaviour first appear in MND, and how these symptoms develop over time.

Based on previous research, we think that some people may begin to experience these symptoms very early, possibly even before they are diagnosed with MND.

We want to be able to identify individuals who have early signs of cognitive and behaviour change, and I am collaborating with researchers from the University of Miami who have been collecting cognitive and behavioural data from people who have a genetic risk of developing MND.

These people do not have a diagnosis of MND, but they complete cognitive and behavioural tests every few years. This means that we can see how mild difficulties with thinking and changes in behaviour first begin and how the evolve and develop criteria to better identify individuals showing these early signs.

I’m also working to design better tools to capture behaviour changes, so that we can better understand how these symptoms develop over time. I’m very fortunate to collaborate on these projects with researchers both in the UK and Internationally, including colleagues at the Universities of Edinburgh and Miami.

What do you hope the future of your research and impact will be?

In the short-term, I hope my research will help to improve our understanding of how difficulties in thinking and changes in behaviour develop over time in people with MND.

Being able to identify people in the early stages of MND means that we can make sure these individuals and their families receive support to help manage their cognitive and behavioural symptoms. It will also mean that these individuals can be included in clinical trials aimed at slowing or preventing the progression of the disease.

I hope to also further our understanding of what specific factors increase a person with MND’s risk of developing cognitive and behavioural changes.

Although the work currently focuses on people who have a genetic risk of MND, we hope that by understanding what early cognitive and behaviour symptoms look like, and who’s most at risk of developing them, we will be able to identify people in the early stages of disease even if they do not carry a genetic risk of MND.

Ultimately, I hope my research will help make a meaningful difference to people living with and affected by MND, by supporting earlier diagnosis, better care, and in time, more effective treatments.

Can you tell us why you’re keen to get involved or keen to share your work at LEARN?

I’m really excited to be involved in the LEARN event as it’s a chance for me to share my research directly with people who are affected with MND.

I’m keen to hear their perspectives and experiences, as that feedback is very helpful to shape future research questions so that they’re more relevant and meaningful.

Opportunities to engage and interact with people affected by MND can be limited when working in research, so LEARN is a valuable chance to both share what I’ve been doing and to learn from those my work aims to benefit.

Why is it important for events like these to take place?

Events like LEARN are very important because they help to build stronger connections between researchers and people affected by MND. They allow people to share their lived experiences, learn about current research, and see how their contributions can make a real difference.

These events also play a vital role in raising awareness of MND more widely, as well as highlighting the work of charities like MND Scotland that provide support to those affected.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

I love talking about my research and am always happy to be contacted at caroline.mchutchison@stir.ac.uk.

The Lived Experience and Researcher Network (LEARN), organised by Scotland’s MND charity, MND Scotland, brings together people affected by motor neuron disease (MND) and local MND researchers.  

For more information, please visit: https://mndscotland.org.uk/news/learn-2025/