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MND affects nerve cells located in the cerebrum and spine, which tell your muscle tissue how to function.

This leads them to lose strength and stiffen over time and usually affects how you walk, talk, eat and breathe.

It is a relatively rare condition that is most frequent in people above age fifty, but adults of any age can be affected.

An individual's chance in their life of contracting MND is 1 out of 300.

Approximately five thousand people in the UK will have the disease at any one time.

Researchers are uncertain the cause of MND, but it is probable to be a combination of the genes - or inherited characteristics - you get from your mother and father when you are born, and additional lifestyle factors.

For up to 10% of individuals with MND, particular genetic factors are far more significant.

Typically there is a family history of the disease in such instances.

What are the First Signs of the Condition?

MND impacts each person uniquely.

Not all individuals has the identical signs, or experiences them in the same order.

The condition can progress at varying rates too.

Among the most common signs are:

• muscle weakness and cramps
• rigid articulations
• difficulties in how you speak
• issues with ingesting, eating and taking fluids
• weakened coughing

Is There a Cure?

There is no cure, but there is optimism coming from treatments targeted at various types of MND.

MND is not one disease - it is actually several that culminate in the death of motor neurones.

A new drug known as tofersen works in only one in 50 individuals, however it has been demonstrated to decelerate - and in certain instances even undo - a portion of the manifestations of MND.

It has been referred to as "absolutely groundbreaking" and a "real moment of hope" for the entire condition.

Although the medication has recently received approval in the EU, it is not yet available in the UK.

Just one drug presently approved for the management of MND in the UK and approved by the NHS.

Riluzole may slow down the advancement of the condition and increase survival by a few months, but it does not reverse damage.

What is Survival Rate for MND?

Some people can survive for decades with MND, including theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking, who was identified at the age of 22 and lived to 76.

But for most, the illness advances rapidly and life expectancy is just a few years.

According to the non-profit MND Association, the condition claims the lives of a third of people within a twelve months and over 50% within two years of identification.

As the neurons cease functioning, swallowing and breathing become more challenging and many people need nutritional support or breathing apparatus to help them remain living.

Are Athletes At Greater Risk to Receive a Diagnosis?

The precise reason has not yet been found, but top-level sportspeople appear overrepresented by MND.

Two studies from 2005 and 2009 showed that soccer players have an elevated chance of developing MND.

A 2022 study by the Glasgow University involving four hundred ex- Scotland rugby union players determined they had an higher likelihood of developing the disease.

Scientists additionally discovered that rugby athletes who have experienced repeated head injuries have biological differences that could render them more susceptible to contracting MND.

The MND Association acknowledges there is a "link" between collision sports and MND.

It added that while the athletes researched were had a greater chance to acquire MND, it did not prove the sports directly led to the disease.

The charity also stresses that "reported MND cases in these studies is remains quite small, and so determining there is a definite increased risk could be misinterpreted if this is merely a grouping due to random chance".

Several high-profile athletes have been identified with the condition in the past few years.

These include former rugby union players, footballers, and cricket athletes.

Across the Atlantic, baseball player Lou Gehrig died from the condition aged 39.