ALS - The disease "took" the life of the "Captain Marvel" actor at the age of 49

After 5 years of fighting amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), "Captain Marvel" actor Kenneth Mitchell passed away on February 24. Many friends and relatives expressed their condolences to the actor.

Recently, the news that the actor from the movie "Captain Marvel" passed away at the age of 49 after more than 5 years of fighting ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), shocked fans.

According to Variety, actor Kenneth Mitchell, who played the father of the character Captain Marvel, died due to complications from ALS. This disease can erode the patient's brain and spinal cord, affect motor neurons, and can cause death within 3-5 years from the time symptoms appear.

In 2018, he was diagnosed with ALS. The disease left him with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a progressive neurodegeneration that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. He started using a wheelchair in 2019 and publicly announced his health problems a year later.

From that point on, he stopped his artistic activities and spent time with his family. The actor's passing made many fans sad and sad.

According to Mayoclinic, ALS, a disease of the nervous system, affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. ALS causes loss of muscle control. The disease gets worse over time.

ALS is also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, named after American baseball legend Lou Gehrig - who was nicknamed "Iron Man" when he was playing.

He suffered from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis at the peak of his career and died just 2 years after being diagnosed at the age of 39. In addition, famous physicist Stephen Hawking and guitarist Jason Becker were also victims of ALS.

ALS often begins with an oral condition: difficulty swallowing, slurred speech. In addition, the disease is characterized by muscle twitching and weakness in the arms or legs. Ultimately, they affect control of the muscles needed to move, speak, eat, and breathe. There is no cure for this deadly disease.

ALS is not a contagious disease and is difficult to predict early because up to now, the cause of this disease has not been accurately confirmed.

On the other hand, up to 90% of people get this disease randomly, only 10% of recorded cases are due to family genetic influence.

In particular, ALS attacks without regard to age or gender. Everyone, from old to young, male or female, fat or thin... is at risk of getting the disease without even knowing it.

Specific symptoms of ALS

According to the Mayo Clinic, symptoms of ALS vary from person to person. Symptoms depend on which nerve cells are affected. ALS often begins with widespread muscle weakness and gets worse over time. Symptoms may include:

- Difficulty walking or performing normal daily activities.

- Frequently stumble and fall.

- Weak legs, feet, and ankles.

- Weak or clumsy hands.

- Difficulty swallowing or slurred speech.

- Muscle cramps, twitching of arms, shoulders, tongue.

- Crying, laughing, yawning at the wrong time.

- Change thoughts and behavior.

ALS often starts in the hands, feet, arms, or legs. It then spreads to other parts of the body. Muscles weaken as more nerve cells die. This ultimately affects chewing, swallowing, speaking and breathing.

In general, there is no pain in the early stages of ALS. Pain is also uncommon in the later stages. ALS usually does not affect bladder control. It also usually does not affect the senses, including the ability to taste, smell, touch and hear.

The disease develops at a very high speed and destroys the patient's body. When suffering from ALS, patients quickly lose the ability to walk, hold, or grasp with their hands, and their eyes close or open very slightly because the muscles in this part have weakened.

In the final stage, the patient will even choke or have food stuck in the lungs because the swallowing muscles can no longer move.

Physicist Stephen Hawking, died of ALS

Typically, people with ALS only live 3-5 years from diagnosis. To date, there is no specific treatment to completely cure this disease.

Several factors increase the risk of ALS

The specific cause of ALS is not fully known, but several factors may increase the risk of the disease such as genetics, age (common in people between 40 and 60 years old) and gender (men are more likely to develop the disease). higher risk).

Some studies also indicate that exposure to toxic substances or severe trauma may play a role in the development of ALS.

Currently, there is no specific prevention for ALS because the cause of the disease is unclear. However, understanding risk factors can help people pay attention to their health and consult a doctor when unusual symptoms appear.

Early diagnosis and symptom management can improve quality of life for people with ALS. Support from family, friends, and support groups can help during treatment and care.

Through many years of research, medical experts have only found a substance called Riluzole that improves and prolongs patients' lives, but only temporarily.

Besides Riluzole, scientists also show that regular exercise and sports, especially subjects such as swimming, walking, cycling, aerobics... help a lot with this disease.

According to experts, maintaining light activity will help increase muscle strength, slow down muscle atrophy in ALS, thereby reducing pain for the patient.