To find a cure for ALS, provide patient and family support and increase public awareness.
The Foundation's mission supports:
Patient services. Full spectrum patient care, including the Les Turner/Lois Insolia ALS Center, the Home and Community Services Team, a communications and medical equipment program, respite grants, support group meetings, and much more.
Research. More than 30 years of groundbreaking research in partnership with the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, Illinois.
Events, education and awareness. Local focus—global reach. Take part in events in your own neighborhood that will support ALS families in Chicago and beyond.
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease or motor neuron disease (MND), causes motor neurons to stop working and die. The result is loss of voluntary movement and muscle functions such as speaking, swallowing, and breathing. ALS occurs regardless of race, ethnicity or socioeconomic status. ALS is most common between 40 and 70 years of age, although it can strike at any age. In the US, someone is diagnosed every 90 minutes, and 35,000 people are living with ALS. Average lifespan is three to five years from diagnosis. Approximately 10% of all cases are inherited forms, and a faulty protein pathway is known to play a role in all types of ALS. Though treatment of symptoms often improves quality of life, there is no cure for ALS.