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ALS, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. A-myo-trophic comes from the Greek language. "A" means no. "Myo" refers to muscle, and "Trophic" means nourishment – "No muscle nourishment." When a muscle has no nourishment, it "atrophies" or wastes away. "Lateral" identifies the areas in a person's spinal cord where portions of the nerve cells that signal and control the muscles are located. As this area degenerates it leads to scarring or hardening ("sclerosis") in the region.
It is colloquially known, especially in the United States, as "Lou Gehrig's disease."
From ALS Association: What Is ALS?
Additional reading:
- 1) National Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Registry
- Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), sometimes called Lou Gehrig's disease, is a progressive disease that attacks the nerve cells that control voluntary movement. The National ALS Registry is a congressionally mandated registry for persons in the U.S. with ALS. It is the only population-based registry in the U.S. that collects information to help scientists learn more about who gets ALS and its causes. No one knows for sure what causes ALS and currently there is no cure. If you have the disease, consider joining the Registry and completing the brief risk-factor surveys because your answers could help scientists defeat ALS.
- (2) Mayo Clinic Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
- (3) ALS Association Symptoms and Diagnosis
- (4) MNT ALS: Causes, Symptoms and Treatments
Notable people
- Preston Cloud, American earth scientist, cosmologist, and paleontologist
- Lou Gehrig, Baseball Hall of Famer and source of the term "Lou Gehrig's disease"
- David Niven, British actor and novelist
- Sidney Preston Osborn, 7th Governor of Arizona
- Henry A. Wallace, 33rd President of the United States
Other sites with list for people with ALS:
- Disabled World Famous People with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Lou Gehrigs Diseae
- Wikipedia - List of people with ALS This is a list of famous people who have or had Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
- Raymond Abrashkin - author
- Zeca Afonso - Portuguese folk singer and anti-fascist politician
- John Arthur - spouse of Jim Obergefell, the lead plaintiff in Obergefell v. Hodges
- David E. Babcock, Sr. - former CEO, May Department Stores - 1975–1980; governor of U.S. Postal Service - 1980
- Derek Bailey - British avant-garde guitar virtuoso
- Jason Becker - American guitar virtuoso
- Lead Belly - blues singer and guitarist
- Stefano Borgonovo - Italian football player
- Rob Borsellino - Des Moines Register columnist and author of So I'm Talkin' to This Guy...
- Scott Brazil - American television producer and director
- O.J. Brigance - American Football Player and Advisor
- Harry Browne - best-selling author and 2-time Libertarian U.S. presidential candidate
- Jerry Glenn Bryant - professional wrestler from Memphis, TN
- Paul Cellucci - politician and diplomat; 69th Governor of Massachusetts and U.S. Ambassador to Canada
- Ezzard Charles - boxer; former world heavyweight champion
- Leonard Cheshire - notable RAF pilot and charity worker
- Marián Čišovský - Slovak football player
- Preston Cloud - eminent American earth scientist
- Sid Collins - radio personality; radio voice of the Indianapolis 500
- Luca Coscioni - Italian researcher, political activist and advocate for euthanasia
- Dominic S. D'Angona - nuclear physicist, worked on the Manhattan Project
- Neale Daniher - former AFL player (Essendon) & coach (Melbourne)
- Dennis Day - singer, comedian, actor
- Dieter Dengler - Vietnam era Air Force pilot who escaped from Laotian POW camp
- Michael Donnelly - Gulf War veteran
- Ann Downer - Author of books for children and teenagers
- Constantinos Apostolou Doxiadis - Greek architect, urban planner and visionary
- John Drury - longtime ABC7 Chicago news anchor
- Bruce Edwards - PGA Tour caddy for golfer Tom Watson
- Mary Goode Ercolino - (AKA Meme & Mrs. Erc) former educator and mentor from Miller Place, NY, realtor & humanitarian, "Meme's Mighty Team" for Walk for Life ALS fundraiser and donations.
- Jenifer Estess - theatre producer; star of HBO documentary Three Sisters, subject of HBO film Jennifer; founding member of Project ALS
- Hal Finney - computer scientist
- Jay S. Fishman - Chairman of the Board and former CEO of The Travelers Companies
- Roberto Fontanarrosa - Argentine cartoonist
- Pete Frates - former Boston College baseball star, founder and inspiration behind the viral ALS Ice Bucket Challenge (Summer 2014)
- Steven Gey- law professor and expert on the separation of church and state and freedom of speech; former on-air analyst for ABC during the 2000 presidential recount
- Lou Gehrig - baseball player, after whom the disease is commonly referred
- Richard Glatzer - writer and director; director of Still Alice
- Steve Gleason - American football player for the New Orleans Saints 2000-2007
- Marc Harrison - designer
- Pro Hart - Australian painter
- Stephen Hawking - theoretical physicist and author of several books on astrophysics, including A Brief History of Time
- Bob Haymes - actor, singer, pianist and songwriter of the Great American Songbook ballad "That's All"
- Stephen Heywood - carpenter; subject of So Much So Fast and His Brother's Keeper
- Jim "Catfish" Hunter - baseball player
- Jörg Immendorff, German painter
- Jacob K. Javits, U.S. Senator from New York
- Axel Jensen - writer
- Jimmy Johnstone, Scottish international footballer
- Hans Keller - Austrian-born British musicologist and music critic.
- Suna Kıraç, Turkish businesswoman and philanthropist
- Joseph Mayo - Clerk of the Maine House of Representatives
- Charles Mingus - jazz bass player
- Glenn Montgomery - NFL football player for the Houston Oilers and Seattle Seahawks
- Johnathon Nadaro - Australian painter and sculptor
- Augie Nieto - fitness guru; founder and retired chief executive of Life Fitness and the chairman of Octane Fitness
- James Nishio, MD - physician, board certified in pulmonology, critical care, and sleep disorders
- David Niven - actor
- Krzysztof Nowak, Polish footballer
- Richard K. Olney - neurologist; ALS physician and researcher
- Sidney Preston Osborn - former governor of Arizona
- Neon Park - American artist
- Christopher Pendergast - former Miller Place; NY educator; founder of the Ride For Life ALS non-profit organization (est. 1998)
- Mike Porcaro- American bassist, Toto
- Diane Pretty - British "right to die" advocate
- C. Foster Raab - American BioPshychologist & Founder of APF.
- Don Revie - English football player and manager
- Fernando Ricksen - Dutch football player
- Sue Rodriguez - Canadian "right to die" advocate
- Franz Rosenzweig - philosopher and religious thinker
- Stanley Sadie - British musicologist, music critic and editor of the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians
- Ed Sadowski - baseball catcher and coach
- Washington César Santos - Brazilian Footballer.
- Michael Schwartz - key conservative political strategist in the U.S. Congress; American "right to life" advocate; chief of staff to U.S. Senator Tom Coburn, M.D. (R-Okla.)
- Morrie Schwartz - educator
- Raúl Sendic - Uruguayan Marxist and leader of the Tupamaros
- Gianluca Signorini - Italian football player
- Lane Smith - actor
- Konrad Spindler - archaeologist, involved in the analysis of the Ötzi glacier mummy
- Jon Stone - creator of Sesame Street
- Maxwell D. Taylor - former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
- Kevin Turner - NFL fullback for the New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles
- Roy Walford - gerontologist and life extensionist
- Henry A. Wallace - 33rd Vice President of the United States to Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Tommy Webb - Entrepreneur; Owner of Paragon Sourcing Winder
- Charlie Wedemeyer - former athlete and coach; motivational speaker
- Joost van der Westhuizen - former South African Rugby Union player; former Supersport commentator[1]
- Michael Zaslow - soap actor
- Mao Zedong - Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party (controversial)
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