Debbie Petrovsky, a woman with ALS residing in Massachusetts, pens poetry to articulate her experience living with the disease. Her unique expression is unique to her experience yet offers insight for those looking to learn more about the challenges of ALS.
From the latest updates on ALS research and advocacy to information about caring for people living with ALS and stories from around the country, the Association’s blog covered it all. Here is a quick look at the top 10 features our readers enjoyed most.
Since 2019, the Association Roundtable Program has provided a forum for candid, facilitated discussions to help shape the Association’s strategic planning efforts and find solutions to make ALS a livable disease while urgently finding cures.
We talked with Dr. Yuka Koike, postdoctoral fellow working under her mentor, Dr. Leonard Petrucelli in the Petrucelli lab at Mayo Clinic Jacksonville, to learn more about her and her ALS research focused on revealing how TDP-43 mediated RNA dysfunction contributes to ALS/FTD disease.
My parents had been married less than two years when my dad was diagnosed. Of course, making a decision regarding whether or not to start a family was difficult at the time, but due to their faith and positive outlook, they chose to do so. Had they not shared the same optimism, my older brother John would not be here, and I would not be writing this today. To say that I am thankful for their decision is an understatement. My dad has had a long battle with ALS and is still fighting after 26 years.
The work detailed in this report covers the entirety of our mission to create a world without ALS, from expanding the research pipeline, to working to bring the best care possible to people living with ALS and their caregivers to fighting for increased federal funding for ALS research and public policies that improve the quality of life for people living with ALS.
Thanks to the hard work of ALS advocates, Congress has passed the Accelerating Access to Critical Therapies (ACT) for ALS Act after a unanimous vote in the Senate. The bill previously passed in the House 423-2. The bill is expected to be signed into law by President Biden.