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Motor neurone disease affects nerve cells located in the brain and spine, which tell your muscle tissue what to do.

This causes them to weaken and become rigid over time and typically impacts your walking, talk, consume food and breathe.

This is a quite uncommon condition that is most frequent in people over 50, but grown-ups of any age can be impacted.

An individual's chance in their life of developing MND is one in 300.

About 5,000 adults in the UK are living with the disease at any given moment.

Researchers are not sure the cause of MND, but it is likely to be a combination of the genetic material - or biological traits - you get from your parents when you are delivered, and other environmental influences.

For up to 10% of people with MND, specific genes are far more significant.

There is usually a hereditary background of the disease in these cases.

What are the First Signs of the Condition?

MND impacts each person uniquely.

Not everyone has the same symptoms, or encounters them in the identical sequence.

The disease can progress at different speeds too.

Among the most frequent signs are:

• muscle weakness and cramps
• rigid articulations
• difficulties in how you speak
• complications involving ingesting, eating and taking fluids
• reduced cough reflex

Is There a Treatment?

There is no cure, but there is hope stemming from treatments focused on different forms of MND.

MND is not one disease - it is actually multiple that result in the demise of motor neurones.

A new drug called tofersen works in just 2% of individuals, however it has been shown to decelerate - and in certain instances even reverse - a portion of the manifestations of MND.

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

Although the drug has recently been approved in the EU, it is not currently accessible in the UK.

Just one pharmaceutical presently approved for the treatment of MND in the UK and endorsed by the NHS.

Riluzole may slow down the progression of the disease and increase survival by several months, but it does not reverse harm.

Determining Life Expectancy for MND?

Some people can survive for decades with MND, such as renowned scientist Stephen Hawking, who was identified at the twenty-two years old and survived until 76.

But for the majority, the illness advances rapidly and life expectancy is only several years.

Based on the charity MND Association, the disease claims the lives of a one-third of people within a twelve months and over 50% within two years of diagnosis.

As the nerve cells stop working, ingestion and respiration become more challenging and many people need feeding tubes or respiratory aids to help them remain living.

Are Athletes At Greater Risk to Be Diagnosed?

The precise reason has not been identified, but top-level sportspeople appear disproportionately affected by MND.

Two studies from 2005 and 2009 indicated that professional footballers have an elevated chance of developing MND.

Research from 2022 by the Glasgow University involving 400 ex- Scotland rugby union players concluded they had an increased risk of developing the disease.

Researchers also found that rugby athletes who have experienced repeated head injuries have physiological variations that may make them more susceptible to contracting MND.

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

It added that while the sportspeople studied were had a greater chance to develop MND, it did not prove the sports directly caused the condition.

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

Several prominent athletes have been diagnosed with the condition in the past few years.

This encompasses former rugby union players, footballers, and cricketers.

In the United States, MLB athlete Lou Gehrig died from the disease at the age of 39.