The NY/NJ
Region of the Huntington’s Disease Society of America (HDSA) will be holding their annual Team Hope Walk Long Island on September 8, 2013 at Belmont Lake
State Park, Birch Pavillion. The Team Hope Walk program is HDSA’s largest grassroots event,
being held on over 100 cities across the country. All proceeds support HDSA’s fight to improve the
lives of people affected by HD and their families.
Registration begins at 9:00am and walk kick off beings at 10:00am. The HDSA is asking for support of the community to become a sponsor, form a team, walk as an individual, donate products or volunteer to coordinate the event activities.
Team Hope is a fun, family-friendly walk.
Huntington's
disease (HD) is a devastating, hereditary, degenerative brain disorder that
results in a loss of cognitive, behavioral and physical control, and for which,
presently, there is no cure and only one FDA-approved treatment for a symptom
of HD. HD slowly diminishes the affected individual's ability to walk, think,
talk and reason. Symptoms usually appear in an individual between 30 and 50
years of age and progress over a 10 to 25 year period. Cases of juvenile HD have been diagnosed in
children as young as two years of age. Eventually, a person with HD
becomes totally dependent upon others for his or her care. More than 30,000
people in the United States are currently diagnosed with HD. Each of their
siblings and children has a 50 percent risk of developing the disease,
therefore 250,000 are at risk. Although medications can relieve some
symptoms in certain individuals, research has yet to find a means of conquering
or even slowing the deadly progression of HD.
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About the Huntington’s Disease Society of America
The Huntington’s Disease Society of America is
the largest 501(c)(3) non-profit volunteer organization dedicated to improving
the lives of everyone affected by Huntington’s Disease. Founded in 1968 by
Marjorie Guthrie, wife of folk legend Woody Guthrie who lost his battle with
HD, the Society works tirelessly to provide the family services, education,
advocacy and research to provide help for today, hope for tomorrow to the more
than 30,000 people diagnosed with HD and the 250,000 at-risk in the United States.
Among the catalog of resources made possible by the organization, HDSA
supports 21 Centers of Excellence at major medical facilities throughout the
U.S., funds research into the biology of the disease to facilitate the
development of treatments and cures, hosts more than 170 support groups for
people with HD, their families, caregivers and people at-risk, and is the
premiere resource on Huntington’s disease for medical professionals and the
general public. The Society is comprised of 54 local chapters and
affiliates across the country with its headquarters in New York City. To learn
more about Huntington’s disease and to get involved in HDSA, please visit www.hdsa.org or call 1-800-345-HDSA.
