Throughout history there have been an array of diseases and illnesses, everything from the common cold to epidemics that have decimated populations. Medical Science has progressed to the point that many diseases are now treatable, curable, or even extinct. Yet even with this incredible progress there are still many diseases that remain not only without a cure, but without even effective treatments. One of these diseases is amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease as it is commonly known, is a degenerative disease affecting the nervous system and the only outcome is death. Let’s take a look at the symptoms and how the effect they have on ALS patients. The early symptoms are slight and hardly noticed, they are easy for victim’s to ignore and even easier for physician’s to misdiagnosis. Early symptoms include muscle weakness, fatigue, and a heavy or numb feeling in the arms and legs. These symptoms begin slowly as simply dropping things or tripping frequently. Then the symptoms begin to cause a lot more problems that are much more difficult to ignore. Patients begin having trouble with things we do every day without really even having to think much about them. As this disease progresses into the more advanced stages victims experience difficulty with swallowing, breathing will become difficult and leave the patient at high risk for pneumonia and they lose the ability to speak. The only abilities spared by this devasting disease are brain function, eye motion, bladder function and the sense of touch. Although these few abilities are spared, it almost makes this disease even worse. An ALS victim’s mind is alert and functional but they can’t communicate. They feel the need to urinate, but do not have the capacity to do anything about it. They can feel the touch of their loved ones but cannot reciprocate. The abilities spared by this disease are so few that they may not seem a blessing as much as a burden. As there is still no one test that can diagnosis this disease, there is also no known cause. There are studies that seem to show this is a genetic disorder yet others indicate an environmental link or some show that past medical history and injury may be the trigger. Yet at this time no one knows for sure and so the prevailing theory is a combination of all these factors that encourage the development of the condition. So let’s talk about what is being done to bring awareness and funding to this disease. Unless you were living in a vacuum this summer you have most likely heard about, and maybe even participated in, the ALS ice bucket challenge. This challenge turned into a fundraising campaign the likes of which have rarely ever been seen. Latest reports from the ALS Foundation website put the funds raised at 115 million dollars and, although dwindling, still generating donations. According to Slate.com, where this challenge originated is a twisted trail of strange challenges that were not even remotely related to ALS, although some were for charitable causes. Whether this evolved from a Christian based campaign for clean water in third world countries, or drunken dares among bored Canadian comrades, the phenomenon has created an undeniable increase in funding for research into this devasting disease. There are also individuals that are pioneers into the public awareness campaign to combat this disease, and these people have an even greater stake in this game. Take Steve Gleason, a former NFL player who may always be remembered for his blocked punt on the night the New Orleans Superdome reopened for the first time after Hurricane Katrina. Steve played for The New Orleans Saints from 2000-2008. In 2011, Steve was diagnosed with ALS. Steve and his family have started Team Gleason and the No White Flags Foundation to encourage support for ALS research into a cure. He has not let his diagnosis dampen his spirit of adventure. In 2013 Steve Gleason, along with an enormous support team, put together and successfully completed a seven day trek along the Incan Trail in Peru. Beyond the personal satisfaction for Steve in completing this goal, it brought immense awareness to the disease through the promotion and publication of video footage. It is impossible to not be in awe of an individual as strong as Steve, but there are just as many other regular people battling this disease that are bringing about awareness through their everyday lives and the generosity of others. Like Pittsburgh firefighter Matthew Onyshko and his wife Jessica. Matthew joined the Pittsburgh Fire Fighters in 2007 and within a year was diagnosed with ALS. He was living the life he had always wanted, with his wife and two daughters along with the job of his dreams, then he received the devasting diagnosis. Rather than this disease destroying his life and family it has caused an enormous outpouring of support from Matthew’s entire community. The fire fighters that he worked with have taken Matthew and his family under their wings. These amazing individuals are working extra shifts to ensure that the Onyshko family continue to receive his paychecks. You may think of this as incredibly generous, but that is really only the beginning of the story, his co-workers have been doing this for over three years. To see the outpouring of love and support from others that is being shown to the victims of this devasting disease can give us hope that treatments will continue to be developed. There are very few treatments available that are even available to slow the progression and ease the symptoms for these patients and there is no cure. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke website, the only FDA approved drug, “ Riluzole is believed to reduce damage to motor neurons by decreasing the release of glutamate.” This drug can prolong the survival rate for individuals for several months it is not even close to a cure. Hopefully the discovery of this initial drug will lead to further drug development and/or combinations that will eliminate the progression of this disease and lead to a cure
Today I have given you a lot of information on ALS, the disease, but this speech means more to me than just imparting information to you. My grandfather succumbed to ALS in 1995 at the age of 74. Watching this disease take control of the body of a great man was terrible, but knowing that his cognitive abilities were fully functional was devastating. As I said earlier; there is no cure for ALS and without continuing research to find a cure, the only outcome will continue to be death, but with continued public awareness campaigns and successful fund raising efforts medical research may develop more effective treatments or even a cure for this devasting disease.

Sources:
1) http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/amyotrophiclateralsclerosis/detail_ALS.htm
2) http://www.alsa.org/about-als/
3) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amyotrophic_lateral_sclerosis
4) http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/amyotrophic-lateral-sclerosis/basics/definition/con-20024397
Sources:
1) http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/amyotrophiclateralsclerosis/detail_ALS.htm
2) http://www.alsa.org/about-als/
3) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amyotrophic_lateral_sclerosis
4) http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/amyotrophic-lateral-sclerosis/basics/definition/con-20024397

http://www.forbes.com/sites/dandiamond/2014/08/29/the-als-ice-bucket-challenge-has-raised-100m-but-its-finally-cooling-off/