ALS patient skydives for a cure

ALS patient Derek Walton will skydive in support of Sunnybrook Heath Sciences Centre's ALS / Neuromuscular Clinic on Saturday, August 20, 2011, continuing the fight against the devastating disease. Walton was featured on CTV National News on August 16.

"Your brain stays alert to the very end," Walton explains. "The difference between ALS and other neurological disorders is that people actually die of ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) - with the other disorders, patients die of their complications."

Through Jumping for PALS 3 (People with ALS), Derek will raise funds for ALS research at Sunnybrook by jumping out of a plane.

Derek's condition began with a slight numbness and cramping in his right hand, which then spread to both his arms and into his legs. It took several years and many incorrect diagnoses before Derek was referred to Sunnybrook's ALS Clinic, where they discovered that Derek had ALS, also called Lou Gehrig's disease. Sunnybrook is home to the largest ALS clinic in North America.
 
Derek's case is rare. The majority of ALS patients have an average lifespan of less than five years - Derek has now been living with ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) for nine years.
 
"As my arms and legs weaken, so too does my energy level, but not my heart," says Derek. "I feel that because ALS affects around 3,000 Canadians annually, compared to some other conditions which affect hundreds of thousands of Canadians, there isn't enough awareness or funding for this disease."

To support Jumping for PALS 3 and Derek's efforts to fund a cure for ALS, visit www.waltoncure4als.ca.