We all know about the Ice bucket challenge at this stage, countless celebrities have thrown a bucket of ice water over their head all in the name of charity. Amyotropic lateral sclerosis or ALS as we all know has many different names, from motor neurone disease or Lou Gehirg's disease in the US. What you might not know is how many people are affected by it and the effect that it has one someone. In this article I will attempt to give you a glimpse of what it's like to live with AlS and why it's so important to raise awareness for this disease.
Relatively speaking;
AlS is quite a rare disease and roughly affects 2 people per 100,000 a year.
It's more common in men than women, but that appears to be changing.
The majority of people who develop the disease are between the ages of 40 and 75, with most people being affected after 60.
It's a progressive neurodegenerative disease that causes muscles weakness and muscle deterioration in the body.
It affects the nerve cells in the brain and in the spinal cord, and when the motor neurons in the brain die, the ability of the brain to control movement is lost.
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It eventually progresses to the stage where the individual loses the ability to speak, swallow and even breathe.
As of this moment, there is no cure for ALS so it means that supporting the cause by donating and raising awareness is all the more important. The only treatment for motor neurone disease is called riluzole, which improves the chance of survival by a short amount of time, usually around four to six months. While it may not be that much, it is still taking strides to finding a proper cure for those affected by it. ALS can be hereditary and can be attirbuted to why people get the disease at a younger age. Once diagnosed with the disease the patients success rates are slim, with some 50 per cent of patients living for 2 years, 20 per cent living five years or more and only 10 per cent more than 10 years. One of RTE's most beloved sports presenters Colin Murray was diagnosed with ALS in 2010. Murray's strength and resilience fighting the disease was an inspiration to many and sadly, he died three years later, which goes to show how rapid the disease can progress.
All support for finding a cure is necessary, whether you donate money or not, raising awareness is the key. So for those of you who still view the Ice bucket challenge as being a vain attempt to get attention, get off your high horse. Any efforts to raise awareness for this disease is step towards finding a cure. 12 million dollars has been raised far for the ALS Association in the US and there is plenty more to come. The problem is that the disease is so rare that pharmaceutical companies won't put the time and money into to finding a cure, because it's not a profitable for them. That is why donating money is so important because of the cost to find a cure for the disease. So if you still have your doubts about people's motivations behind the ice bucket challenge , just watch this video about a man whose family has been affected by ALS and who has been diagnosed himself. Take 6 minutes out of your life and see the impact that ALS has on people's lives and struggles they go through on a daily basis.
Facts and Statistics from : http://www.alscenter.org/living_with_als/facts_statistics.html
What is Als: http://www.alsa.org/about-als/what-is-als.html
