Rehoboth Walk to Defeat ALS set Sept. 10
People with ALS, family members, friends, caregivers and others affected by Lou Gehrig's disease will come together Saturday, Sept. 10, for the 2017 Rehoboth Beach Walk to Defeat ALS at the Bandstand on the Boardwalk in Rehoboth. The event will raise funds for research and community-based patient services programs for people with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.
Often called Lou Gehrig's disease, ALS is a progressive motor neuron disease which causes patients to eventually lose control of all voluntary muscles of the body. The ALS Association Greater Philadelphia Chapter, with financial support from the Walk to Defeat ALS, is the largest organization supporting people with ALS in Delaware.
"Ten years ago, we started the Rehoboth Beach Walk to Defeat ALS to bring hope and support to ALS families in Delaware," said Mary Lou Allen, who started the walk with her mother Mary Ann Wollter in memory of her father Gene in 2008. "Each year, we walk in memory of my dad, but also for all of the people touched by this disease, and we will continue until we end ALS for good."
Registration begins at 8 a.m., and the walk begins at 9:30 a.m. For more information or to register, go to www.rehobothwalktodefeatals.org.
ALS was first described in 1869 by French neurologist Jean-Martin Charcot, but it wasn't until 1939 that Lou Gehrig brought national and international attention to the disease when he abruptly retired from baseball after being diagnosed with ALS. Most commonly, the disease strikes people between the ages of 40 and 70, and as many as 30,000 Americans have the disease at any given time. In May of this year, the FDA approved the first new treatment for ALS in 22 years, Radicava, produced by MT Pharma. Information on this treatment is at www.alsphiladelpia.org/radicava.
People with ALS gradually lose the ability to walk, move their arms, swallow, talk and even breathe. Military veterans are twice as likely to develop ALS compared to the general population. While research is increasing understanding of the disease, ALS currently has no effective treatment or cure. Without mechanical ventilation, the average life expectancy for a person with ALS is two to five years after diagnosis, although some people live more than 10 years.
The ALS Association and its local chapters are leading the fight to treat and cure ALS through global research and nationwide advocacy while empowering people with Lou Gehrig's disease and their families to live fuller lives by providing them with compassionate care and support. For more information, go to www.alsphiladelphia.org.
