Famous People with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Lou Gehrigs Disease Famous People with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Lou Gehrigs Disease A list of famous and well known people with ALS or Lou Gehrigs Disease one of the most common neuromuscular diseases worldwide. ALS is one of the most common neuromuscular diseases worldwide, and people of all races and ethnic backgrounds are affected. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, sometimes called Lou Gehrig's Disease, or Maladie de Charcot) is a progressive, usually fatal, neurodegenerative disease caused by the degeneration of motor neurons, the nerve cells in the central nervous system that control voluntary muscle movement. Between 1 to 2 people per 100,000 develop Lou Gehrig's Disease each year. ALS most commonly strikes people between 40 and 60 years of age, but younger and older people can also develop the disease. Scientists have not found a definitive cause for Lou Gehrig's Disease but the onset of the disease can be linked to a variety of risk factors. It is believed that one or more of the following factors are responsible for the majority of Lou Gehrig's Disease cases.

Researchers suspect a virus, exposure to neurotoxins or heavy metals, DNA defects, immune system abnormalities, and enzyme abnormalities as the leading causes of the disease. Lou Gehrig's Disease Symptoms The onset of ALS may be so subtle that the symptoms are frequently overlooked. The earliest symptoms of Lou Gehrig's Disease may include twitching, cramping, or stiffness of muscles; muscle weakness affecting an arm or a leg, and/or slurred and nasal speech. Eventually, ALS weakens muscles, including muscles used for breathing, until they become paralyzed. Men are affected slightly more often than women. Famous People with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) or Lou Gehrig's Disease Lou Gehrig - Henry Louis "Lou" Gehrig (June 19, 1903 - June 2, 1941), born Ludwig Heinrich Gehrig, was an American baseball player in the 1920s and 1930s, who set several Major League records and was popularly called the "The Iron Horse" for his durability. His record for most career grand slam home runs (23) still stands today.

At the midpoint of the 1938 season, Gehrig's performance began to diminish. As Lou Gehrig's debilitation became steadily worse, Eleanor called the famed Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. After six days of extensive testing at Mayo Clinic, the diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) was confirmed on June 19, Gehrig's 36th birthday. The prognosis was grim: rapidly increasing paralysis, difficulty in swallowing and speaking, and a life expectancy of fewer than three years, although there would be no impairment of mental functions. Gehrig probably was told that the cause of ALS was unknown but it was painless, non-contagious and cruel - the nervous system is destroyed but the mind remains intact. Professor Stephen Hawking - Born on the eighth of January in the year 1942 in Oxford, England. Stephen has conducted work concerning the basic laws that govern the universe itself. Along with Roger Penrose, he has shown that Einstein's General Theory of Relativity implied space and time would have a beginning in the, "Big Bang," and end in black holes.

In regards to the disability Stephen experiences, he has some things to say: "I am quite often asked: How do you feel about having ALS? The answer is, not a lot. I try to lead as normal a life as possible, and not think about my condition, or regret the things it prevents me from doing, which are not that many." Mao Zedong - (1893-1976) Chinese military and political leader, who led the Communist Party of China (CPC) to victory against the Kuomintang (KMT) in the Chinese Civil War, and was the leader of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from its establishment in 1949 until his death in 1976. Regarded as one of the most important figures in modern world history, Mao is still a controversial figure today, over thirty years after his death. He died of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, commonly known in the U.S as Lou Gehrig's Disease and elsewhere as Motor Neurone Disease. Mao had been in poor health for several years and had declined visibly for some months prior to his death.

Lead Belly - Huddie William Ledbetter, (January, 1888 - December 6, 1949) was an American folk and blues musician, notable for his clear and forceful singing, his virtuosity on the twelve string guitar, and the rich songbook of folk standards he introduced. Although he most commonly played the twelve string, he could also play the piano, mandolin, harmonica, violin, concertina, and accordion. In some of his recordings, such as in one of his versions of the folk ballad "John Hardy", he performs on the accordion instead of the guitar. In 1949 he began his first European tour with a trip to France, but fell ill before its completion, and was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig's disease. Lead Belly died later that year in New York City. Charles Mingus - (April 22, 1922 - January 5, 1979) was an American jazz bassist, composer, bandleader, and occasional pianist. He was also known for his activism against racial injustice. Mingus was prone to depression.

He tended to have brief periods of extreme creative activity, intermixed with fairly long periods of greatly decreased output. By the mid-1970s, Mingus was suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (popularly known as Lou Gehrig's disease), a wastage of the musculature. His once formidable bass technique suffered, until he could no longer play the instrument. He continued composing, however, and supervised a number of recordings before his death. Mingus died aged 56 in Cuernavaca, Mexico, where he had traveled for treatment and convalescence. His ashes were scattered in the Ganges River. Lane Smith - (born April 29, 1936 - June 13, 2005) was an American actor best known for his role as Perry White in the American television series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman. He also played Richard Nixon in The Final Days, for which he received a Golden Globe award nomination for best actor in a mini-series or motion picture made for television in 1990.

Smith was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's Disease in April 2005 and died of the disease at his home in Northridge, California on June 13, 2005. He was 69 years old. David Niven - James David Graham Niven (March 1, 1910 - July 29, 1983) was an Academy Award-winning English actor. He resumed his career after war II, with films such as A Matter of Life and Death (1946), Around the World in Eighty Days (1956) (as Phileas Fogg), The Guns Of Navarone (1961), and The Pink Panther (1963). The same year as he hosted the show with Jack Lemmon and Bob Hope, Niven won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in Separate Tables (1958). Niven had a long and complex relationship with Samuel Goldwyn. Niven died in Switzerland on July 29, 1983 of motor neurone disease (Lou Gehrig's Disease) at age 73.

Don Revie - Donald George Revie - OBE, (10 July 1927 - 26 May 1989), was a football player for Leicester City, Hull City, Sunderland, Manchester City and Leeds United as a deep-lying centre forward. After managing Leeds United (1961-1974) with great success, his reign becoming known as Leeds' "Glory Years", he managed England from 1974 until 1977. In 1987 he revealed that he was suffering from motor neurone disease, and he died in Edinburgh in May 1989, aged 61. Jason Becker- (born July 22, 1969) is an American neo-classical metal guitarist and composer. At the age of 16 he became part of the Mike Varney-produced duo Cacophony with his friend Marty Friedman. They released Speed Metal Symphony in 1987 and Go Off! in 1988. At the age of 20, he joined David Lee Roth's band.

While recording the album A Little Ain't Enough and preparing for the respective tour, he began to feel what he called a "lazy limp" on his left leg. He was soon diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's Disease) and given three years to live. He could barely finish the recording, using low-gauge (thin) guitar strings and other techniques to make it easier to play with his weakening hands. He eventually lost the ability to speak and now communicates with his eyes via a system developed by his father. Although his ALS gradually robbed him of his ability to play guitar, to walk, and eventually even to speak, he still remains mentally sharp and, with the aid of a computer, continues composing. Dieter Dengler - (May 22, 1938 - February 7, 2001) was a United States Navy pilot during the Vietnam War. He was one of the two survivors (the other being Pisidhi Indradat), out of seven, to escape from a Pathet Lao prison camp in Laos. He was rescued after 23 days on the run.

He continued flying almost up until his death, as a pilot for TWA until his retirement at age 59, then privately. In 2000, Dengler was inducted into the Gathering of Eagles program and told the story of his escape to groups of young military officers. Dengler died on February 7, 2001 of ALS. Fokko du Cloux - (December 20, 1954 - November 10, 2006) was a mathematician and computer scientist who worked on the Atlas of Lie groups and representations until his death on November 10, 2006. One of the founding members of the project, he was responsible for building the Atlas software which was instrumental in the mapping of the E8 Lie Group. The Project successfully managed to map the structure of the E8 group in 2007. Fokko du Cloux was diagnosed with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in 2005, but he continued to actively participate in the project until his death.

Stanley Sadie - CBE (October 30, 1930-March 21, 2005) was a leading British musicologist, music critic, and editor. He was editor of the sixth edition of the Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (1980), which was published as the first edition of the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. Sadie died at his home in Cossington, Somerset on 21 March 2005, of amytrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's disease), which had been diagnosed only a few weeks earlier. Hans Keller - Hans Keller (1919-1985) was an Austrian-born British musician and writer who made significant contributions to musicology and music criticism, and invented the method of 'Wordless Functional Analysis' (in which a work is analysed in musical sound alone, without any words being heard or read).

An original thinker never afraid of controversy, Keller's passionate support of composers whose work he saw as under-valued or insufficiently understood made him a tireless advocate of Benjamin Britten and Arnold Schoenberg as well as an illuminating analyst of figures such as Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven and Mendelssohn. Keller was married to the artist Milein Cosman, whose drawings illustrated some of his work. Jacob Javits - Jacob Koppel "Jack" Javits (May 18, 1904 - March 7, 1986) was a liberal Republican New York politician originally allied with Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller, fellow U.S. Senators Irving Ives and Kenneth Keating, and Mayor John V. Lindsay. Javits served until 1981; his 1979 diagnosis with amytrophic lateral sclerosis (also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease) led to a 1980 primary challenge by the comparatively lesser-known Long Island Republican county official Alfonse D'Amato. Javits died of Lou Gehrig's disease in West Palm Beach, Florida, at the age of eighty-one.

Michael Zaslow - Michael Joel Zaslow (November 1, 1942 - December 6, 1998) was an American actor. He is best known for his role as villain Roger Thorpe on CBS's Guiding Light, a role he played from 1971 to 1980 and from 1989 to 1997. He had earlier played Dick Hart on the CBS soap opera Search for Tomorrow and Dr. Peter Chernak on Love is a Many Splendored Thing. He also played David Renaldi on ABC's One Life to Live from 1983 to 1986. It was some time before Zaslow was finally diagnosed with ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease. His widow, psychologist/writer Susan Hufford, and his daughters, Marika and Helena, founded ZazAngels, a foundation that wishes to raise funds in order to find a cure for Lou Gehrig's disease. Chris Pendergast - Pendergast was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, when he was 44 years old.

Pendergast rode in his electric wheelchair from Yankee Stadium, where Gehrig played, to Washington, D.C. The 350-mile journey took 15 days to complete. Pendergast's symbolic journey, which he called a "Ride for Life," launched his advocacy campaign for increased research funding and Medicare laws for people living with ALS. Now in its ninth year, the annual Ride For Life has become a major ALS event, raising nearly $2 million so far. According to Ride For Life , more than 30,000 Americans have ALS, which is incurable and causes increasing paralysis, resulting in death from respiratory failure. Dan Toler - (September 23, 1948 - February 25, 2013) - also known as "Dangerous Dan Toler", was an American guitarist. He become a member of The Allman Brothers Band with Betts from 1979-1982 appearing on Enlightened Rogues (1979), Reach for the Sky (1980) and Brothers of the Road (1981).

Toler announced in 2011 that he had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a degenerative nerve diseased better known as Lou Gehrig's disease. "His ability to make people laugh and feel good and happy was amazing," the Sarasota Herald Tribune quoted his friend and former bandmate Chaz Trippy as saying. "That smile of his is just a force of life and, God, how he loved playing that guitar." Dennis Day - (May 21, 1916, - June 22, 1988), born Owen Patrick Eugene McNulty, was an Irish-American singer and radio and television personality. Day appeared for the first time on Jack Benny's radio show on October 8, 1939, taking the place of another famed tenor, Kenny Baker. He remained associated with Benny's radio and television programs until Benny's death in 1974. Besides singing, Dennis Day was an excellent mimic. He did many imitations on the Benny program of various noted celebrities of the era, such as Ronald Colman, Jimmy Durante, and Jimmy Stewart.

In 1948, Day married Peggy Almquist and the marriage lasted until his death, the couple had ten children. Dennis Day died of Lou Gehrig's disease at age 72 in Los Angeles, California. Stephen Michael "Steve" Gleason - (March 19, 1977) - A former professional football player originally signed by the Indianapolis Colts as an undrafted free agent in 2000, he played for the Saints through the 2007 season. Gleason is especially well known for his blocked punt in a 2006 game that became a symbol of recovery in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. In 2011, he revealed that he was battling ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease. Augie Nieto - (born Augustine L. Nieto II in 1958) is the founder and retired chief executive of Life Fitness and the chairman of Octane Fitness. In March 2005, Augie was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, more commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease.

Augie Nieto is noted for fighting against ALS by creating "Augie's Quest", which he started by teaming with the Muscular Dystrophy Association after his diagnosis. Augie's Quest has raised over $30 million dollars in funds for research into the disease. Mike Porcaro - (May 29, 1955 - March 15, 2015) was an American bass player, best noted for his work with the Grammy Award-winning band Toto. Porcaro stopped performing with Toto in 2007 after a growing numbness in his fingers that made it increasingly difficult for him to play. It was announced via official press release that Mike Porcaro was suffering from Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. James Augustus "Catfish" Hunter - (April 8, 1946 - September 9, 1999), was a Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. During a 15 year baseball career, he pitched from 1965 to 1979 for both the Oakland Athletics and the New York Yankees. Hunter became the highest paid pitcher in baseball when he signed with the Yankees in 1975.

Hunter refused higher offers from the San Diego Padres and the Kansas City Royals to sign with the New York Yankees. He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1987. Hunter died at his home in Hertford, North Carolina, in 1999. He had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as "Lou Gehrig's Disease", at the time. Morrie Schwartz - (December 20, 1916 to November 4, 1995) was a sociology professor at Brandeis University and an author. He was the subject of the best-selling book Tuesdays With Morrie, which was published in 1997 and later made into a film. Morrie's father, Charlie Schwartz was a Russian immigrant who left Russia to escape the Russian Army. His mother died when he was only 8 years old. After his wife died, Charlie Schwartz remarried a Romanian woman named Eva who became Morrie's stepmother. Morrie had a younger brother David who developed polio at a young age. Morrie's whole family was Jewish. In adulthood Morrie married a woman named Charlotte and had two sons named Rob and Jon Schwartz.

How Has Stephen Hawking Lived Past 70 with ALS? - Scientific American Scientific American Health How Has Stephen Hawking Lived Past 70 with ALS? An expert on Lou Gehrig's disease explains what we know about this debilitating condition and how Hawking has beaten the odds By Katherine Harmon on January 7, 2012 Advertisement | Report Ad Stephen Hawking turns 70 on Sunday, beating the odds of a daunting diagnosis by nearly half a century. The famous theoretical physicist has helped to bring his ideas about black holes and quantum gravity to a broad public audience. For much of his time in the public eye, though, he has been confined to a wheelchair by a form of the motor-neuron disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). And since 1985 he has had to speak through his trademark computer system—which he operates with his cheek—and have around-the-clock care . But his disease seems hardly to have slowed him down. Hawking spent 30 years as a full professor of mathematics at the University of Cambridge. And he is currently the director of research at the school's Center for Theoretical Cosmology. But like his mind, Hawking's illness seems to be singular.

Most patients with ALS —also known as Lou Gehrig's disease , for the famous baseball player who succumbed to the disease—are diagnosed after the age of 50 and die within five years of their diagnosis. Hawking's condition was first diagnosed when he was 21, and he was not expected to see his 25th birthday. Why has Hawking lived so long with this malady when so many other people die so soon after diagnosis? We spoke with Leo McCluskey , an associate professor of neurology and medical director of the ALS Center at the University of Pennsylvania, to find out more about the disease and why it has spared Hawking and his amazing brain. [An edited transcript of the interview follows.] What is ALS—and is there more than one form of it? ALS, which is also known as a motor-neuron disease—and colloquially as Lou Gehrig's disease in the U.S.—is a neurodegenerative disease. Each muscle is controlled by motor neurons that reside in the brain in the frontal lobe. These are controlled electrically and are synaptically connected to motor neurons that reside lower down in the brain—as well as motor neurons that reside in the spinal cord.

The guys in the brain are called the upper motor neurons, and the guys in the spine are called the lower motor neurons. The disease causes weakness of either upper motor neurons or lower motor neurons or both. It's been known for quite some time that there are variants of ALS. One is referred to as progressive muscular atrophy, or PMA. It appears to be an isolated illness of the lower motor neurons. However, pathologically, if you do an autopsy of a patient, they will have evidence of deterioration of upper motor neurons. There is also primary lateral sclerosis—PLS—and clinically it looks like an isolated upper motor-neuron disorder. However, pathologically they also have lower motor-neuron disorder. The other classic syndrome is called progressive baldor palsy—or progressive supranuclear palsy—which is weakening of cranial muscles, like the tongue, face and swallowing muscles. But it pretty much always spreads to limb muscles. Those are the four classic motor-neuron disorders that have been described. And it was thought for quite some time that these disorders were limited to motor neurons. It's now clear that that's not true.

It's now well recognized that 10 percent of these patients can develop degeneration in another part of the brain, such as other parts of the frontal lobe that don't contain the motor neurons or the temporal lobe. So some of these patients can actually develop dementia , called frontal-temporal lobe dementia. One of the misconceptions about ALS is that it's only a motor-neuron disease, and that's not true. What has Stephen Hawking's case shown about the disease? One thing that is highlighted by this man's course is that this is an incredibly variable disorder in many ways. On average people live two to three years after diagnosis. But that means that half the people live longer, and there are people who live for a long, long time. Life expectancy turns on two things: the motor neurons running the diaphragm—the breathing muscles. So the common way people die is of respiratory failure. And the other thing is the deterioration of swallowing muscles, and that can lead to malnutrition and dehydration. If you don't have these two things, you could potentially live for a long time—even though you're getting worse. What's happened to him is just astounding. He's certainly an outlier.

Has he lived so long because he got the disease when he was young and had the juvenile-onset type? Juvenile-onset is diagnosed in the teenage years, and I don't know enough about his course to say. But it's probably something similar to juvenile-onset disorder, which is something that progresses very, very, very slowly. I have patients in my clinic who were diagnosed in their teens and are still alive in their 40s, 50s or 60s. But not having ever examined him or taken a history, it's a little hard for me to say. He's a very good example of the sparing of the non-motor parts of the brain that can occur. How frequent are these cases of very slow-progressing forms of ALS? I would say probably less than a few percent. How much do you think Stephen Hawking's longevity has been due to the excellent care that he has received versus the biology of his particular form of ALS? It's probably a little bit of both. I just know him from television, so I don't know what kind of interventions he's had.

If he really isn't on a ventilator, then it's his biology—it's the biology of his form of the neurodegenerative disease that determines how long he will live. For trouble swallowing you can elect to have a feeding tube placed, which basically takes malnutrition and dehydration off the table. But mostly it's about the biology of the disease. Hawking obviously has quite the active mind, and previous statements that he has made seem to indicate he has a pretty positive mental outlook, despite his condition. Is there any evidence that lifestyle and psychological well-being do much to help with patients' outcomes? Or is the disease usually too quick for that to make a difference? I don't believe that adds to longevity. ALS still doesn't have a cure. What have we learned about the disease recently that might help us find one—or at least better treatments ? Beginning in 2006 it became clear that like a lot of other neurodegenerative diseases, ALS was determined by the accumulation of abnormal proteins in the brain. Ten percent of ALS is genetic and based on a gene mutation. I'm sure there are also at-risk genes for ALS, but there are now multiple genes that have been identified as potentially causing the disease.

Each one of them are interesting in that they lead to the accumulation of different proteins in the brain. Knowing specific genes gives us particular mechanisms in the brain, and would potentially give us targets for therapies. But none of this has given us any robust therapies yet. What does Stephen Hawking's case mean for people who have the disease? It's just an incredible, incredible example of the variability of the disease—and the hope for patients who have it that they could also live a long life. Unfortunately, it's a small percentage of people for whom that actually happens. Stephen Hawking - Biography, Facts and Pictures Blog Stephen Hawking Stephen Hawking is an English theoretical physicist and cosmologist who is widely considered to be one of the greatest scientists alive today. He is currently the director of research at the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology, University of Cambridge. Advertisements Early Life and Education: Born on 8 January 1942 to a biologist father, Hawking had two younger sisters. He was an average student at school, deeply interested in science. After winning a scholarship in natural sciences, he acquired a degree in physics from the University College, Oxford. Thereafter, Hawking also studied astronomy and cosmology at Trinity Hall, Cambridge.

Contributions and Achievements: In his early days at Cambridge, Hawking was diagnosed with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a motor neuron disease in which the nerves controlling the muscles become inactive while the sensory nerves function normally. Due to this sustained condition, it normally takes him about 40 hours to devise a 45 minute lecture. Hawking is known for furthering Einstein’s theory of general relativity with quantum theory. He has about twelve honorary degrees. Awarded the CBE in 1982, he became a Companion of Honor in 1989. He received numerous awards, medals and praises. Hawking is also a Fellow of The Royal Society and a Member of the US National Academy of Sciences. He was honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009. Stephen Hawking is working as the Lucasian Professor of Mathematics since 1979, a position once held by Sir Isaac Newton. Arguably the most famous scientist alive today, he is considered a living legend for his amazing contributions to quantum physics. A highly successful active lecturer and author, Hawking makes use of an adaptive communication system known as Equalizer to combat ALS. It involves a speech synthesizer.

Using the Equalizer, he has authored a book and several scientific papers and lectures, though he is capable of speaking at a mere rate of 15 words per minute. Hawking’s 1988 book “A Brief History of Time” quickly became an instant best-seller and was translated into 30 languages. It has sold over 10 million copies worldwide to date. His 2001 book “The Universe in a Nutshell” is hailed as a masterpiece in the history of modern physics. Personal Life: Stephen Hawking got married to Jane Wilde, a language student, in 1965, and together they have three children and one grandchild. The couple got separated in 1991. As of 2009 Hawking has been almost completely paralyzed. Advertisements History of ALS History of ALS Jean- Marie Charcot (1825-1893) noted the first reports of the characteristics of ALS in 1874, and named the fatal syndrome based on what he found. He was a noted French neurologist who has been called ï¿½the Father of Neurologyï¿½, and explained how the central nervous system works.

Damage to upper motor neurons, which begin at the top of the brain, results in muscle weakness, stiffness, and augmented reflexes. Lower motor neurons start at the base of the brain and spinal cord; injury to these neurons causes muscle atrophy, twitching, weakness, and reduced reflexes. When motor neurons in the brain are affected, muscles for talking, chewing, and swallowing weaken. When lower spinal cord motor neurons are involved, movement is lost in the limbs, neck, and trunk. ALS weakens skeletal (voluntary) muscles. It is usually considered painless. The body is ultimately fully paralyzed; patients must use respirators to breathe. For some, ALS affects the limbs first, making it hard to move; this is called limb- onset ALS. In others, the symptoms affect the facial muscles, speech, and swallowing. This condition is called bulbar- onset ALS. Many have muscle spasms, cramps, and atrophy. Since ALS is a progressive condition, most will suffer from all of these symptoms. In the US, approximately 5,000 people are diagnosed yearly with ALS. Most are between the ages of 45-65, although many are not.

Presently in the United States, about 30,000 people are victims of ALS; most will die within 3-5 years of contracting the fatal syndrome. Ten percent of all known cases are hereditary. Although males are more prone to ALS, the condition has no racial or ethnic boundaries. Drs. Scarmeas, Shih, Stern, Ottoman, and Rowland recently published a scientific article, concluding that subjects with motor neuron diseases were more likely to be slim, or had once been serious athletes. Many famous people in US history have had ALS. For example, Lou Gehrig was a very famous Yankee baseball player and Ezzard Charles was a heavyweight-boxing champion. We found there were many other such people, such as Catfish Hunter, another baseball player, and many football players as well. Senator Jacob Javits was an avid tennis player. David Niven was a competitive sailor. Even some in the musical field were subjected to ALS; Dimitri Shostakovitch and Charles Mingus both vigorously practiced musical instruments. Stephen Hawking, the famous physicist, has ALS as well.

Famous people with ALS - Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS) Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS) Famous people with ALS Lou Gehrig Almost everyone more commonly knows ALS as Lou Gehrig's desiese. ALS is often called Lou Gehrig's disease after the hall-of-fame baseball player, Lou Gehrig. He was diagnosed with ALS in the 1930s. Over time, Lou Gehrig's disease causes the motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord to shrink and dissappper, so that the muscles no longer receive signals to move. As a result, the muscles become smaller and weaker. That is why Lou Geherig had to quit his steller career at baseball. He played to the best of his ability, but it was just too hard for him. At the end of his career, he gave his famous "luckiest man alive speech". That was a special time for both the fans and the students. Mary Valastro Pinto Mary Valastro Pinto is Buddy's mom form cake boss, a popular TV show on the air. During the fifth season of Cake Boss, It because eminent that Mary was suffering from ALS. The starting episode was sweet but sad.

Mary ate a red velvet cupcake more with her fists than with her hands. This is because of her ALS and loss of motor control in her hands. It was quite sad. Steven Hawking Professor Stephen Hawking is a well-known example of a person with MND, and has lived for more than 40 years with the disease. Stephen Hawking: The internationally renowned Physicist, has defied time and doctor's pronouncements that he would not live 2-years beyond his 21 years of age when he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS); also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. The symptoms of Lou Gehrig's Disease are very similar to those of CP, Hawking cannot walk, talk, breathe easy, swallow and has difficulty in holding up his head. Chris Pendergast Pendergast was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, when he was 44 years old. Pendergast rode in his electric wheelchair from Yankee Stadium, where Gehrig played, to Washington, D.C. The 350-mile journey took 15 days to complete.

Pendergast's symbolic journey, which he called a "Ride for Life," launched his advocacy campaign for increased research funding and Medicare laws for people living with ALS. Now in its ninth year, the annual Ride For Life has become a major ALS event, raising nearly $2 million so far. According to Ride For Life , more than 30,000 Americans have ALS, which is incurable and causes increasing paralysis, resulting in death from respiratory failure. Create a free website Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS) Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS) Esclerosis lateral amiotrófica What Is Lou Gehrig's Disease? Lou Gehrig's disease is a disorder that's also called amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (say: ah-my-uh-TRO-fik LA-tuh-rul skluh-RO-sis), or ALS. The official name comes from these Greek words: "a" for without "lateral" for side (of the spinal cord) "sclerosis" for hardening or scarring So, amyotrophic means that the muscles have lost their nourishment. When this happens, they become smaller and weaker.

Lateral means that the disease affects the sides of the spinal cord, where the nerves that nourish the muscles are located; and sclerosis means that the diseased part of the spinal cord develops hardened or scarred tissue in place of healthy nerves. ALS is often called Lou Gehrig's disease after Lou Gehrig, a hall-of-fame baseball player for the New York Yankees who was diagnosed with ALS in the 1930s. People in England and Australia call ALS motor neurone disease (MND). The French refer to it as maladie de Charcot, after the French doctor Jean-Martin Charcot, who first wrote about ALS in 1869. Lou Gehrig's disease damages motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord. Motor neurons are nerve cells that control muscle movement. Upper motor neurons send messages from the brain to the spinal cord, and lower motor neurons send messages from the spinal cord to the muscles. Motor neurons are an important part of the body's neuromuscular system. The neuromuscular system enables our bodies to move and is made up of the brain, many nerves, and muscles.

Things that we do every day — like breathing, walking, running, lifting stuff, and even reaching for a glass of water — are all controlled by the neuromuscular system. Here's how the neuromuscular system works: If you want to make a fist, your brain first sends signals through upper motor neurons to the area in your spinal cord that controls your hand muscles. Then lower motor neurons in your spinal cord signal the muscles in your hand to move and make a fist. Over time, Lou Gehrig's disease causes these motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord to shrink and disappear, so that the muscles no longer receive signals to move. As a result, the muscles become smaller and weaker. Gradually the body becomes paralyzed, which means that the muscles no longer work. However, someone with ALS, even at an advanced stage, can still see, hear, smell, and feel touch. The nerves that carry feelings of hot, cold, pain, pressure, or even being tickled, are not affected by Lou Gehrig's disease. In some people with ALS, the parts of the brain that allow us to think, remember, and learn also are affected by the disease.

continue Rare Among Kids Although this disease can strike anyone, it is extremely rare in kids. According to the ALS Association, most people who develop Lou Gehrig's disease are adults between 40 and 70. Only 2 out of every 100,000 people will get the disease each year. Because it is not contagious, you can't catch ALS from someone who has the disease. Among ALS cases in the United States, 5% to 10% are hereditary, which means the disease runs in certain families. This is called familial (say: fuh-MEE-lee-ul) ALS. At least 90% of cases are not inherited; this is called sporadic (say: spuh-RAH-dik) ALS. How Is the Disease Diagnosed? Lou Gehrig's disease doesn't always begin or become worse in the same way. The disease is different for every person who has it. In general, muscle weakness, especially in the arms and legs, is an early symptom for more than half of people with ALS. Other early signs are tripping or falling a lot, dropping things, having difficulty speaking, and cramping or twitching of the muscles.

As the disease gets worse over time, eating, swallowing, and even breathing may become difficult. It may take several months to know for sure that someone has Lou Gehrig's disease. The illness can cause symptoms similar to other diseases that affect nerves and muscles, including Parkinson's disease and stroke. A doctor will examine the patient and do special tests to see if it might be one of those other disorders. (It's like using the process of elimination to figure out the answer to a multiple-choice question on a test.) One of the tests, an electromyogram (say: eh-lek-tro-MY-uh-gram), or EMG, can show that muscles are not working because of damaged nerves. Other tests include X-rays, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), a spinal tap, and blood and urine evaluations. Sometimes a muscle or nerve biopsy is needed. A biopsy is when a doctor takes a tiny sample of tissue from the body to study under a microscope. Examining this tissue can help the doctor figure out what's making someone sick. previous continue How Is the Disease Treated? Currently, there's no way to prevent or cure Lou Gehrig's disease, but a number of treatments are available to people with the disease.

Medicines can control symptoms, such as muscle cramping and difficulty swallowing, and other drugs can slow the development of the disease. Physical therapy can help people with ALS cope with muscle loss and breathing problems. Special equipment is also provided when it becomes necessary. For instance, a power wheelchair can enable a paralyzed person with ALS to get around. A machine called a ventilator (say: VEN-ti-lay-ter) can help a someone breathe. In addition, a nurse or other health assistant may come to the person's home to provide care that the family cannot handle alone. It's normal for family members to feel upset, overwhelmed, and sad if a loved one has ALS. Counseling, as well as support from other family members and friends, can make it easier to deal with the challenges they face. Living With Lou Gehrig's Disease According to the ALS Association, about half of all people with ALS live at least 3 years after they find out they have the disease, and 20% (or 1 in 5) live 5 years or more. As many as 10% will survive more than 10 years.

Stephen Hawking has been living with Lou Gehrig's disease for about 50 years — ever since his diagnosis at age 21. He is the most famous long-term survivor of the disease. Born in England, Hawking is a famous physicist who furthered our understanding of the universe. He has written a lot of books, including the bestseller A Brief History of Time. He has done these things despite being confined to a wheelchair for many years, being able to move only a few fingers, and needing a voice synthesizer and special computer to speak and write. Hawking, who has a wife and three children, once said, "The prospect of a short life made me want to do more. I realized life was good, and there was a great deal I wanted to do." Living with Lou Gehrig's disease is physically difficult, but it is reassuring to know that the mind is not affected. People with the disease can think as clearly as ever, are able to maintain relationships with friends and family, and should be treated respectfully and normally. Communication can be difficult because the disease affects the person's breathing and the muscles needed for speech and arm movement. With patience, the families of patients with ALS can learn to communicate effectively with their loved one.

Researchers continue to study ALS as they try to understand why it happens, and how the disease damages the motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord. As they learn more about the disease, researchers can continue to develop new and better treatments. Professor Hawking said, "[ALS] has not prevented me from having a very attractive family, and being successful in my work . . . I have been lucky that my condition has progressed more slowly than is often the case. But it shows that one need not lose hope." How Has Stephen Hawking Lived to 70 With ALS? | PBS NewsHour How Has Stephen Hawking Lived to 70 With ALS? EMAIL BY Katherine Harmon January 9, 2012 at 10:59 AM EST An expert on Lou Gehrig’s disease explains what we know about this debilitating condition and how Hawking has beaten the odds Physicist Stephen Hawking onstage at the 2010 World Science Festival Opening Night Gala in June 2010 in New York City. Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/WireImage. Stephen Hawking turns 70 on Sunday, beating the odds of a daunting diagnosis by nearly half a century.

The famous theoretical physicist has helped to bring his ideas about black holes and quantum gravity to a broad public audience. For much of his time in the public eye, though, he has been confined to a wheelchair by a form of the motor-neuron disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). And since 1985 he has had to speak through his trademark computer system–which he operates with his cheek–and have around-the-clock care . But his disease seems hardly to have slowed him down. Hawking spent 30 years as a full professor of mathematics at the University of Cambridge. And he is currently the director of research at the school’s Center for Theoretical Cosmology. But like his mind, Hawking’s illness seems to be singular. Most patients with ALS –also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease , for the famous baseball player who succumbed to the disease–are diagnosed after the age of 50 and die within five years of their diagnosis. Hawking’s condition was first diagnosed when he was 21, and he was not expected to see his 25th birthday. Why has Hawking lived so long with this malady when so many other people die so soon after diagnosis?

We spoke with Leo McCluskey , an associate professor of neurology and medical director of the ALS Center at the University of Pennsylvania, to find out more about the disease and why it has spared Hawking and his amazing brain. [An edited transcript of the interview follows.] What is ALS–and is there more than one form of it? ALS, which is also known as a motor-neuron disease–and colloquially as Lou Gehrig’s disease in the U.S.–is a neurodegenerative disease. Each muscle is controlled by motor neurons that reside in the brain in the frontal lobe. These are controlled electrically and are synaptically connected to motor neurons that reside lower down in the brain–as well as motor neurons that reside in the spinal cord. The guys in the brain are called the upper motor neurons, and the guys in the spine are called the lower motor neurons. The disease causes weakness of either upper motor neurons or lower motor neurons or both. It’s been known for quite some time that there are variants of ALS. One is referred to as progressive muscular atrophy, or PMA. It appears to be an isolated illness of the lower motor neurons.

However, pathologically, if you do an autopsy of a patient, they will have evidence of deterioration of upper motor neurons. There is also primary lateral sclerosis–PLS–and clinically it looks like an isolated upper motor-neuron disorder. However, pathologically they also have lower motor-neuron disorder. The other classic syndrome is called progressive baldor palsy–or progressive supranuclear palsy–which is weakening of cranial muscles, like the tongue, face and swallowing muscles. But it pretty much always spreads to limb muscles. Those are the four classic motor-neuron disorders that have been described. And it was thought for quite some time that these disorders were limited to motor neurons. It’s now clear that that’s not true. It’s now well recognized that 10 percent of these patients can develop degeneration in another part of the brain, such as other parts of the frontal lobe that don’t contain the motor neurons or the temporal lobe. So some of these patients can actually develop dementia , called frontal-temporal lobe dementia. One of the misconceptions about ALS is that it’s only a motor-neuron disease, and that’s not true. What has Stephen Hawking’s case shown about the disease?

One thing that is highlighted by this man’s course is that this is an incredibly variable disorder in many ways. On average people live two to three years after diagnosis. But that means that half the people live longer, and there are people who live for a long, long time. Life expectancy turns on two things: the motor neurons running the diaphragm–the breathing muscles. So the common way people die is of respiratory failure. And the other thing is the deterioration of swallowing muscles, and that can lead to malnutrition and dehydration. If you don’t have these two things, you could potentially live for a long time–even though you’re getting worse. What’s happened to him is just astounding. He’s certainly an outlier. Has he lived so long because he got the disease when he was young and had the juvenile-onset type? Juvenile-onset is diagnosed in the teenage years, and I don’t know enough about his course to say. But it’s probably something similar to juvenile-onset disorder, which is something that progresses very, very, very slowly. I have patients in my clinic who were diagnosed in their teens and are still alive in their 40s, 50s or 60s.

But not having ever examined him or taken a history, it’s a little hard for me to say. He’s a very good example of the sparing of the non-motor parts of the brain that can occur. How frequent are these cases of very slow-progressing forms of ALS? I would say probably less than a few percent. How much do you think Stephen Hawking’s longevity has been due to the excellent care that he has received versus the biology of his particular form of ALS? It’s probably a little bit of both. I just know him from television, so I don’t know what kind of interventions he’s had. If he really isn’t on a ventilator, then it’s his biology–it’s the biology of his form of the neurodegenerative disease that determines how long he will live. For trouble swallowing you can elect to have a feeding tube placed, which basically takes malnutrition and dehydration off the table. But mostly it’s about the biology of the disease. Hawking obviously has quite the active mind, and previous statements that he has made seem to indicate he has a pretty positive mental outlook, despite his condition. Is there any evidence that lifestyle and psychological well-being do much to help with patients’ outcomes?

Or is the disease usually too quick for that to make a difference? I don’t believe that adds to longevity. ALS still doesn’t have a cure. What have we learned about the disease recently that might help us find one–or at least better treatments ? Beginning in 2006 it became clear that like a lot of other neurodegenerative diseases, ALS was determined by the accumulation of abnormal proteins in the brain. Ten percent of ALS is genetic and based on a gene mutation. I’m sure there are also at-risk genes for ALS, but there are now multiple genes that have been identified as potentially causing the disease. Each one of them are interesting in that they lead to the accumulation of different proteins in the brain. Knowing specific genes gives us particular mechanisms in the brain, and would potentially give us targets for therapies. But none of this has given us any robust therapies yet. What does Stephen Hawking’s case mean for people who have the disease? It’s just an incredible, incredible example of the variability of the disease–and the hope for patients who have it is that they could also live a long life. Unfortunately, it’s a small percentage of people for whom that actually happens. This article is reproduced with permission from Scientific American .

It was first published on January 7. Find the original story here . Physicist Stephen Hawking visits L.A. stem cell lab FacebookEmail Twitter Google+ LinkedIn Pinterest Physicist Stephen Hawking visits L.A. stem cell lab LOS ANGELES (AP) — Stephen Hawking on Tuesday toured a stem cell laboratory where scientists are studying ways to slow the progression of Lou Gehrig's disease, a neurological disorder that has left the British Post to Facebook Physicist Stephen Hawking visits L.A. stem cell lab LOS ANGELES (AP) — Stephen Hawking on Tuesday toured a stem cell laboratory where scientists are studying ways to slow the progression of Lou Gehrig's disease, a neurological disorder that has left the British Check out this story on USATODAY.com: CancelSend A link has been sent to your friend's email address. Posted! A link has been posted to your Facebook feed. 2 To find out more about Facebook commenting please read the Conversation Guidelines and FAQs Physicist Stephen Hawking visits L.A. stem cell lab AP 9:48 p.m.

ET April 9, 2013 The 71-year-old British physicist, who is almost fully paralyzed due to Lou Gehrig's disease, toured an L.A. facility that is studying ways to slow the disease's progression. Physicist and best-selling author Stephen Hawking takes part in the Seattle Science Festival Luminaries Series last June. (Photo: Ted S. Warren, AP) Story Highlights He was diagnosed 50 years ago, at age 21 He receives around-the-clock care Can communicate only by twitching his cheek LOS ANGELES (AP) — Stephen Hawking on Tuesday toured a stem cell laboratory where scientists are studying ways to slow the progression of Lou Gehrig's disease, a neurological disorder that has left the British cosmologist almost completely paralyzed. After the visit, the 71-year-old Hawking urged doctors, nurses and staff at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center to support the research. Hawking recalled how he became depressed when he was diagnosed with the disease 50 years ago and initially didn't see a point in finishing his doctorate. But his attitude changed when his condition didn't progress as fast and he was able to concentrate on his studies.

"Every new day became a bonus," he said. The hospital last year received nearly $18 million from California's taxpayer-funded stem cell institute to study the debilitating disease also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. ALS attacks nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that control the muscles. People gradually have more and more trouble breathing and moving as muscles weaken and waste away. There's no cure and no way to reverse the disease's progression. Few people with ALS live longer than a decade. Diagnosed at age 21 while a student at Cambridge University, Hawking has survived longer than most. He receives around-the-clock care, can only communicate by twitching his cheek, and relies on a computer mounted to his wheelchair to convey his thoughts in a distinctive robotic monotone. A Cedars-Sinai patient who was Hawking's former student spurred doctors to invite the physicist to glimpse their stem cell work. "We decided it was a great opportunity for him to see the labs and for us to speak to one of the preeminent scientists in the world," said Robert Baloh, who heads the hospital's ALS program. Cedar-Sinai scientists have focused on engineering stem cells to make a protein in hopes of preventing nerve cells from dying.

The experiment so far has been done in rats. Baloh said he hopes to get governmental approval to test it in humans, which would be needed before any therapy can be approved. Renowned for his work on black holes and the origins of the universe, Hawking is famous for bringing esoteric physics concepts to the masses through his best-selling books including A Brief History of Time, which sold more than 10 million copies worldwide. Hawking titled his speech to Cedars-Sinai employees "A Brief History of Mine." Despite his diagnosis, Hawking has remained active. In 2007, he floated like an astronaut on an aircraft that creates weightlessness by making parabolic dives. Doctors don't know why some people with Lou Gehrig's disease fare better than others. Baloh said he has treated patients who lived for 10 years or more. "But 50 years is unusual, to say the least," he said. 37 CONNECT TWEET 1 LINKEDIN 2 COMMENTEMAILMORE Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Question: What famous physicist has ALS disease?
Answer: Stephen Hawking