The nervous system is defined as the network of nerve cells and fibers that transmits nerve impulses between parts of the body. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (AKA ALS) is a progressive disease that attack the nerve cells found within the brain and spinal cord. On average 15 people a day are diagnosed with ALS, and on average patients die two to five years after diagnoses or early symptoms appear. The ALS Foundation’s goal is to find a cure for the fatal disease and provide relief to patients currently fighting it. Research that goes on today for ALS impacts the current lives of these patients because it gives them relief in their current hardships caused by a malfunctioning nervous system. The ALS Foundation should allocate its funds raised
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The ice bucket challenge is a dare to all people to either donate money to ALS research or upload a video of them dumping a bucket of ice on their heads. The resulting videos went viral and the ALS Foundation raised 115 million dollars as a result. The ALS foundation has reported use of 47 million of the 115 million dollars raised in 2015 (Wolff-Mann, 2015). They also report spending two-thirds allocated toward research in gene discovery, clinical trials, biomarkers, and drug development (Wolff-Mann, 2015). Around 9.4 million dollars has been spent on patient and community services, and 5.1 million has gone to education, fundraising, and processing fees (Wolff-Mann, 2015). The ALS Foundation shows to be correctly spending their money most of the money is spent on the search for a cure, cause, and more effective relief to current and future ALS patients. Even after the ice bucket challenge raised funds, the drug riluzole is the only FDA approved drug for ALS, and its effectiveness is not strongly proven nor is it explained. This is one reason why more funding should be put in the research of treatments meant to relieve symptoms and prolong life for ALS patients. Around 90 percent of ALS cases were a result of an unknown cause and 5-10% of cases are known to be a result of genetic mutations. This shows that knowledge on the causes of ALS is minimal and it requires more funding. The remaining money raised from the Ice Bucket Challenge should be spent on the research of causes and treatments for ALS because it sanctions new discoveries to be made and better relief to be given to ALS
The ice bucket challenge is a dare to all people to either donate money to ALS research or upload a video of them dumping a bucket of ice on their heads. The resulting videos went viral and the ALS Foundation raised 115 million dollars as a result. The ALS foundation has reported use of 47 million of the 115 million dollars raised in 2015 (Wolff-Mann, 2015). They also report spending two-thirds allocated toward research in gene discovery, clinical trials, biomarkers, and drug development (Wolff-Mann, 2015). Around 9.4 million dollars has been spent on patient and community services, and 5.1 million has gone to education, fundraising, and processing fees (Wolff-Mann, 2015). The ALS Foundation shows to be correctly spending their money most of the money is spent on the search for a cure, cause, and more effective relief to current and future ALS patients. Even after the ice bucket challenge raised funds, the drug riluzole is the only FDA approved drug for ALS, and its effectiveness is not strongly proven nor is it explained. This is one reason why more funding should be put in the research of treatments meant to relieve symptoms and prolong life for ALS patients. Around 90 percent of ALS cases were a result of an unknown cause and 5-10% of cases are known to be a result of genetic mutations. This shows that knowledge on the causes of ALS is minimal and it requires more funding. The remaining money raised from the Ice Bucket Challenge should be spent on the research of causes and treatments for ALS because it sanctions new discoveries to be made and better relief to be given to ALS