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Textbook Navigating Life With Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis 1St Edition Mark B Bromberg Ebook All Chapter PDF
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1
Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers
the University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education
by publishing worldwide. Oxford is a registered trade mark of Oxford University
Press in the UK and certain other countries.
Published in the United States of America by Oxford University Press
198 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016, United States of America.
© American Academy of Neurology 2017
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in
a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the
prior permission in writing of Oxford University Press, or as expressly permitted
by law, by license, or under terms agreed with the appropriate reproduction
rights organization. Inquiries concerning reproduction outside the scope of the
above should be sent to the Rights Department, Oxford University Press, at the
address above.
You must not circulate this work in any other form
and you must impose this same condition on any acquirer.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Bromberg, M. B. (Mark B.), author. | Banks-Bromberg, Diane, author.
Title: Navigating life with ALS / by Mark B. Bromberg, MD, FAAN, Department
of Neurology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT,
Diane Banks-Bromberg, JD, Fabian Vancott, Salt Lake City, UT.
Description: New York, NY : American Academy of Neurology/Oxford University
Press, [2017] | Includes index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016036224 | ISBN 9780190241629 (alk. paper)
Subjects: LCSH: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis—Popular works.
Classification: LCC RC406.A24 B76 2017 | DDC 616.8/39—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016036224
This material is not intended to be, and should not be considered, a substitute for
medical or other professional advice. Treatment for the conditions described in this
material is highly dependent on the individual circumstances. And, while this material
is designed to offer accurate information with respect to the subject matter covered
and to be current as of the time it was written, research and knowledge about medical
and health issues is constantly evolving and dose schedules for medications are being
revised continually, with new side effects recognized and accounted for regularly.
Readers must therefore always check the product information and clinical procedures
with the most up-to-date published product information and data sheets provided by
the manufacturers and the most recent codes of conduct and safety regulation. The
publisher and the authors make no representations or warranties to readers, express
or implied, as to the accuracy or completeness of this material. Without limiting the
foregoing, the publisher and the authors make no representations or warranties as to
the accuracy or efficacy of the drug dosages mentioned in the material. The authors
and the publisher do not accept, and expressly disclaim, any responsibility for any
liability, loss or risk that may be claimed or incurred as a consequence of the use and/or
application of any of the contents of this material.
1 3 5 7 9 8 6 4 2
Printed by Sheridan Books, Inc., United States of America
v
We dedicate this book to Lois F. Hall and her husband, Ray A. Hall,
parents of Diane Banks Bromberg. Lois rose to the challenges of ALS
and lived her life enthusiastically until her passing. She participated
in a drug trial that she hoped would shed light on this disease for the
benefit of future patients. Ray unselfishly dedicated himself to helping
Lois through her illness in every way possible.
vi
vi
CONTENTS
1. Introduction | 1
What Are the Basic Features of ALS? | 1
How It Starts: Patient Stories | 4
How to Use This Book | 10
2. ALS Origins | 13
Why the Name ALS? | 13
Is ALS Different from Motor Neuron Disease? | 13
Is ALS a New or Old Disease? | 14
How Common Is ALS? | 15
Who Was Lou Gehrig? | 15
Who Else Had ALS? | 16
v ii
vi
v iii Contents
4. Causes of ALS | 33
What Causes ALS? | 33
Why Do Neurons Die in ALS? | 34
Glutamate Excitotoxicity | 34
Oxidative Stress | 35
ix
Contents ix
Mitochondrial Dysfunction | 35
Protein Aggregation | 35
Immune Dysfunction | 36
Gene Mutations | 36
Challenging Facts about ALS | 36
Why Do I Have ALS? | 38
Environmental Factors | 38
Clusters | 38
Military Service | 39
What Is Familial ALS? | 39
How Is Familial ALS Passed On? | 41
Autosomal Dominant Inheritance | 41
Autosomal Recessive Inheritance | 41
X-Linked Inheritance | 42
How Many Genes Are Associated with Familial ALS? | 45
Are There Genes Associated with Frontotemporal
Lobe Dementia? | 45
Are Genetic Causes of ALS and Frontotemporal
Lobe Dementia Related? | 45
How Do I Know If I Have Familial ALS? | 46
Should I Have Genetic Testing for ALS? | 47
Should Family Members of Individuals with Familial ALS
Have Genetic Testing? | 47
x Contents
Contents xi
x ii Contents
Contents x iii
x iv Contents
Contents xv
xvi Contents
Contents x v ii
x v iii Contents
G L O S S A R Y | 2 1 9
ABOU T T HE AMERIC AN AC ADEMY OF NEUROLOGY AND
A M E R I C A N B R A I N F O U N D AT I O N | 2 3 1
I N D E X | 2 3 3
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x
FOREWORD
The past decade has seen a dramatic increase in the number of books
about amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Is this one truly needed? Yes,
unequivocally. There is literature in which persons with ALS describe
their experiences, and other literature in which medical personnel
discuss ALS. The combined approach here is one that I am confident
will be particularly meaningful to those living with ALS and their
caregivers.
Physicians involved in the teaching and training of medical stu-
dents and residents have long known that trainees learn much more
effectively when presented with a combination of factual material
and patient encounters. This book uses that approach by providing
facts about ALS while concurrently permitting the reader to view
ALS through the eyes of those with the disease and their loved ones.
The factual sections of the book are broad-ranging, covering
virtually all aspects of ALS pathogenesis, presentation, evaluation,
diagnosis, and management in a manner that is centered on what
patients and their caregivers want to know or should know. The
interweaving of patient and caregiver narratives throughout the
book facilitates exploration of topics that are central to living with
ALS but are rarely addressed. For example, the reader can feel the
frustration that so many individuals with ALS feel as test after test
is interpreted as “normal.” At the same time, that reader also can
x x iii
xvi
x x iv F oreword
PREFACE
This is a book about ALS for patients with ALS, their caregivers, and
other family members. ALS is perhaps the most challenging disease
imaginable: researchers do not know what causes it or how to pre-
vent it, no markedly effective treatments are available, and the dis-
ease is inexorably progressive. Not only does it affect the patient,
but it has a life-changing impact on the primary caregiver and other
members of the family.
I began working with patients with ALS early in my neurol-
ogy career, and it has been my main clinical and research empha-
sis over the past 30 years. I established a special ALS clinic at the
University of Michigan and then later established a second clinic
at the University of Utah. I have participated in research efforts on
using new techniques to make the diagnosis of ALS and am particu-
larly interested in issues related to quality of life for people with the
disease. I have also participated in many clinical drug trials related
to ALS in the hope of better understanding this fast-paced disorder
and perhaps, one day, how to prevent it or slow its rate of progres-
sion. With every diagnosis of ALS that I make or confirm, and with
every clinic visit, I try to put myself in the positions of the patient
and caregiver. While this effort can only provide approximations of
what the patient and caregiver experience, I hope it helps me see
xxv
xvi
xxvi P reface
their issues and answer their questions in a realistic way. This book
reflects what I would want to know and how I would want to be
treated if I had ALS.
To further meet the needs of the patient, caregiver, and their
family, I asked my coauthor, who is also my wife, to help me tell this
story. We met when I treated her mother for ALS. Because she has
worn the shoes of the caregiver, she brings a unique perspective on
patient care and the patient viewpoint. That perspective has added
a new dimension to my view of clinical experiences. We hope our
unique combined voice will provide helpful guidance.
Mark B. Bromberg, MD, PhD
xxvi
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
x x v ii
xxivi
xxviii A cknowledgments
Later, the pilot of the Cannonball described the rescue. When he had
first reported his visual sighting, he had been seeing the sunlight
reflected from the surface of Duport's suit. Duport was a white spark,
shining out among the stars like a meteor or nova. The sight had
given the rescue pilot a peculiar feeling, he mentioned later, seeing
this blue-white star slowly growing in the sky until it was brighter than
Venus, seeing this new star rise, a point of white fire, and knowing
the star was a man.
Then they had suited up and blown the cabin pressure. The co-pilot
had gone out the hatch while the pilot remained at his controls.
Watching through the periscope, he could see Duport spread-eagled
against the sky, the left side of his body a glare of sunlight, the right
side in shadow. Duport had not moved his arms or legs since they
had first seen him, neither did he acknowledge with his suit
transmitter. He was about five hundred meters from the ship and
drifting slowly closer. The co-pilot tethered himself to the hull, then
tossed out a line with a magnetic grapple on its end. He missed,
hauled in, and tossed again. On the third try the end of the line
passed within half a meter of Duport's body. Duport moved his arm,
took the end of the line, and hooked it to his belt. The co-pilot hauled
him in.
About a month later, the American pilot saw Rene Duport for the first
time since he had jumped from the Prospero. It was at the space
medicine laboratories at Walter Reed.
Dr. Valdez stood near the window, looking down at the sunlit lawn. In
the shade of a tall shrub a man was sitting in a lawn chair, his head
back, completely relaxed. He wore a blue denim hospital uniform.
His back was to the window.
"Physically he was in good condition when they brought him down,"
the doctor said, "except for a slight case of dehydration."
"Can I talk to him?" the pilot asked.
Dr. Valdez looked at him sharply, as if surprised by the request.
"You can talk to him if you like. But he won't answer you."
The pilot followed the doctor out of the room and down to the lawn.
They came up from behind the lawn chair and stood looking down at
the man sitting in it. His eyes were closed.
The pilot saw that Duport's jaw was slack. He could not tell whether
he was asleep. The flesh in his cheeks was sunken. He looked older.
Dr. Valdez said, "Catatonia, schizophrenia, it's like no condition I've
ever seen before. He is perfectly aware of what is going on around
him, you see. Bring him food and he eats. Stick him with a pin and
he jumps. All his responses are normal. He took the cable and
attached it himself, remember. But he will make no more than the
minimum necessary effort to survive." The doctor chewed his lip,
thinking. "If only he would say something."
"Have you decided why he jumped?" the pilot asked, not realizing
that he was whispering. "What made him panic?"
"No." The doctor shook his head. "Not panic, it wasn't fear alone, I
think. There was something else. We put him through equally critical
moments in training, and he didn't panic then. Fear was part of it, but
there was something else too."
"Well, what then?"
"I don't know the word. It's something new. Maybe Duport is a new
kind of human being. If not fear, call it—love, or desire. He jumped
into space because, I think, he wanted to."
"I don't understand that," the pilot said.
"I don't either—yet." Dr. Valdez moved a step closer to the man in
the chair. "Rene. Rene Duport."
Without moving his head, Duport opened his eyes.
"Stand up."
Duport got up and stood looking at some point half way between the
two men. His eyes no longer glistened.
"It's as if something has gone out of him," the doctor said.
"Do you know who I am?" the pilot asked. Rene Duport turned his
head until the pupils of his eyes were pointed at the American's face.
But his eyes did not seem to focus on him. Rather they were focused
at some point far beyond him.
"Why did you jump?" the pilot said. Moving a step closer, he looked
into the blank, dull eyes, that continued looking through him, focused
on some strange horizon. The eyes no longer seemed blue, but light
grey. The pilot tried to remember where he had seen eyes like that
before. Then he remembered one day, years before, when he had
looked down into the open eyes of a dead man. He shuddered and
turned away.
"If only he would talk," the doctor said.
The pilot had turned his back on Duport. "Why? If he could talk, what
would you ask him?"
It was two or three minutes before the doctor answered.
"I would ask him what it feels like to be a star."
And as the two men walked away, Rene Duport remained standing
where they left him. He was watching. The pupils of his eyes never
shifted, but he was always watching. The Earth, a swollen balloon,
floated past his field of vision. Slowly his right arm rose until his arm
was horizontal from his shoulder. Then the corners of his mouth lifted
in a faint smile, as his fingers touched the Clouds of Magellan.
THE END
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