(NewsNation) — About 5,000 people each year receive an ALS diagnosis, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Because the CDC does not require doctors to report ALS cases, the number of people living with the condition isn’t known.
ALS, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, is a fatal nervous system disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord and gets progressively worse over time.
“ALS is one of the most devastating types of disorders that affect nerve and muscle function,” according to Johns Hopkins Medicine.
What are the symptoms of ALS?
Also called Lou Gehrig’s disease after a baseball player who died from it, ALS causes loss of muscle movement. Often, people may lose the ability to eat, speak, move and breathe, according to the ALS Association.
There is no cure or treatment to stop the progression, and most patients die within three to five years, according to the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
Weakness in one limb will occur for a few weeks before spreading to another limb. This is a sign of the start of the condition. Some may experience slurred speech or trouble swallowing as the first symptoms, according to Johns Hopkins.
Other common symptoms include:
- Muscle twitching and cramps
- Loss of motor control in the hands and arms
- Trouble using arms and legs
- Tripping and falling
- Dropping things
- Fatigue
- Uncontrollable laughing or crying
- Slurred speech
Someone with more progressed symptoms may experience trouble breathing and paralysis.
Who can get ALS?
In 2022, nearly 33,000 people had ALS, according to a scientific study published in January. Researchers predicted the number of cases would rise to more than 36,000 by 2030.
Only 5-10% of cases are linked to family history, while the majority has no known family history or presence of a genetic mutation. It is not contagious.
The cause is unknown, but ALS primarily affects people between 40 and 70 years old, though the onset can occur at a younger age.
Which celebrities have had ALS?
Lou Gehrig, who raised awareness about the disease, played 17 seasons for the New York Yankees. The famed Major League Baseball player died from ALS in 1941 at age 37.
Actor Eric Dane, best known for his role in “Grey’s Anatomy,” is the latest celebrity to reveal their ALS diagnosis.
Physicist Stephen Hawking and singer Roberta Flack both died of ALS. Musician John Driskell Hopkins of the Zac Brown Band and former NFL player Eric Stevens currently have the disease.
