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NFL Players Association, Harvard plan study

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(CNN) - The National Football League Players Association is negotiating a deal with the league to award $100 million awarded to Harvard University over 10 years to study and treat players' injuries and illnesses, according to a proposal obtained by CNN.

In the last few years, the perception of a typical NFL player has undergone a subtle shift: from lithe titans performing formidable feats on the field to men who may end their careers broken down, their brains addled by a mysterious concussion-related brain disease.

But the real picture of the typical NFL player is much more complex, and the health problems run much deeper than concussion.

According to the proposal, the funding would be used to "diagnose, treat and prevent" players' injuries and illnesses.

"No one has ever studied these players before," said Dr. Lee Nadler, dean for clinical and translational research at Harvard Medical School and co-director of the proposed study. "There have been postmortem studies looking at the brains of previous players, but not the players today."

Nadler said that what distinguishes this study is that it will look at the "whole player across his whole life, not just the brain."

The NFL said it looked forward to learning more about the study and hopes "it will play an important role in advancing medical science."

"We have no higher priority than player health and safety at all levels of the game," it said in a statement.

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It is not just the brain that may be damaged after a long career on the playing field. By the end of their careers, NFL players may emerge with all sorts of injuries -- chronic pain, arthritis, joints needing replacement, depression, diabetes, heart problems and concussion-related dementia, among others -- so many they have become a cohort ripe for study.

Read more: http://edition.cnn.com/2013/01/29/health/nfl-harvard-study/?c=&page=1

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