About ALS
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PLEASE NOTE:
As of November 23, 2009, ALS Canada has a new address and phone number:
3000 Steeles Avenue East, Suite 200
Markham, Ontario L3R 4T9
Phone: 905-248-2052   Fax: 905-248-2019

About ALS

ALS is a progressive neuromuscular disease in which nerve cells die and leave voluntary muscles paralyzed. The senses are unimpaired and the intellect may remain unaffected. ALS can strike anyone, male or female, of any ethnic origin and of any age. Usual onset is in middle-age, but some have been diagnosed as teens.

Eighty per cent of those diagnosed will die within two to five years. Less than 10 per cent of cases are hereditary and are called familial ALS, 90 per cent of ALS cases have no known cause and are referred to as sporadic ALS. ALS is not contagious.

Approximately 2,500 - 3,000 Canadians live with ALS. Every day two or three Canadians die of the disease. ALS is the most common cause of neurological death in Canada.

ALS was first identified by French neurologist Dr. Jean-Martin Charcot in 1869.

ALS may also be called:

  • Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
  • Sclérose latérale amyotrophique (SLA)
  • Lou Gehrig's Disease
  • Motor Neuron Disease (MND)
  • Maladie de Charcot

Find Canadian Help for ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease)

If you need to locate a clinic nearest you, please use our ALS clinics directory.

If you would like to contact a provincial society, please click on your province below to find the phone numbers, contact persons, websites, and email addresses of the ALS organizations nearest you.