Over 150 years ago, in 1869, French neurologist Jean-Martin Charot first discovered Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, or ALS. However, attention was not brought to it until 1938 when famous Yankees baseball player, Lou Gehrig, was diagnosed with the disorder. This came as a shock and heartbreak to all baseball fans, but also made ALS known worldwide. On July 4th 1939, Gehrig stood in front of thousands of fans and his own team to give the very well-renowned speech about his fortunate life thanks to baseball and how he has been “The Luckiest Man on the Face of the Earth.” Since his death in 1941, more research has been conducted and more information has surfaced, helping to move scientists to find different treatments and pushing them closer to
…show more content…
The first and most common is called sporadic. This occurs in 90-95 percent of those diagnosed with ALS. The second type is named familial. Familial is not as common and is only inherited genetically. If a parent has the gene, the child is 50 percent more likely to carry the disorder (Gordon 2011). The last type, Guamanian, is seen only in Guam and the Trust Territories. The first case was discovered in the 1950s. This type does not affect those in the United States. The life span of an ALS patient slightly varies. From the diagnosis, half live at least three years and only 20 percent live five or more years. At most, 10 percent will live ten or more years with proper treatment and medication. There are few cases where the disease has stopped progressing and the individual is able to beat ALS (Gordon …show more content…
Stephen Hawking is the prime example, as he is halfway through his 74th year of life, has a very prosperous and successful life, and is still battling ALS every day (ALS 2016). There are also numerous fundraising events worldwide to help raise money for and awareness of ALS. One example is the Walk to Defeat ALS. Since 2000, the program has managed to raise $258,586,864.00 towards finding a cure. Team challenges are physical and athletic events that people around the United States take part in to raise money. Events include running, riding a bike, marathons, and even snowmobile events. One of the most well-known fundraisers is known as the Ice Bucket Challenge. In 2014, millions of people from around the world dumped buckets of ice and water over their heads to stimulate what an ALS patient feels and had the experience videotaped and posted to social media. Millions of dollars were raised and a new gene, NEK1, was discovered with the money raised with this then-sweeping trend (ALS
The first and most common is called sporadic. This occurs in 90-95 percent of those diagnosed with ALS. The second type is named familial. Familial is not as common and is only inherited genetically. If a parent has the gene, the child is 50 percent more likely to carry the disorder (Gordon 2011). The last type, Guamanian, is seen only in Guam and the Trust Territories. The first case was discovered in the 1950s. This type does not affect those in the United States. The life span of an ALS patient slightly varies. From the diagnosis, half live at least three years and only 20 percent live five or more years. At most, 10 percent will live ten or more years with proper treatment and medication. There are few cases where the disease has stopped progressing and the individual is able to beat ALS (Gordon …show more content…
Stephen Hawking is the prime example, as he is halfway through his 74th year of life, has a very prosperous and successful life, and is still battling ALS every day (ALS 2016). There are also numerous fundraising events worldwide to help raise money for and awareness of ALS. One example is the Walk to Defeat ALS. Since 2000, the program has managed to raise $258,586,864.00 towards finding a cure. Team challenges are physical and athletic events that people around the United States take part in to raise money. Events include running, riding a bike, marathons, and even snowmobile events. One of the most well-known fundraisers is known as the Ice Bucket Challenge. In 2014, millions of people from around the world dumped buckets of ice and water over their heads to stimulate what an ALS patient feels and had the experience videotaped and posted to social media. Millions of dollars were raised and a new gene, NEK1, was discovered with the money raised with this then-sweeping trend (ALS