A Worthy Cause

My fellow Stroller Warrior, Elizabeth, formed a team for the upcoming (March 2012) Quintiles Half Marathon in Wrightsville Beach. This team is running in support of research for Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA), a disease for which there is no known cure. The creator/leader of SW, Steph, has a two-year old son who suffers from SMA. He's a total rockstar and kicks butt with his "magic shoes" and walker during PT sessions.  

Cole's "magic shoes"

Here's a little bit more about SMA: Spinal muscular atrophy is a collection of different muscle diseases. Grouped together, it is the second leading cause of neuromuscular disease. Most of the time, a person must get the defective gene from both parents to be affected. Approximately 4 out of every 100,000 people have the condition.

The most severe form is SMA type I, also called Werdnig-Hoffman disease. Infants with SMA type II have less severe symptoms during early infancy, but they become progressively weaker with time. SMA type III is the least severe form of the disease.

Rarely, SMA may begin in adulthood. This is usually a milder form of the disease.

A family history of spinal muscular atrophy is a risk factor for all types of the disorder.

If you have the time, please check out Steph's blog here to read more about the personal affects of SMA on her family.

Source

I have joined the team to support fundraising for researching a cure for SMA. I know you all run for various causes that you have ties to, and it's the holiday season, so pennies are tight, but if you could spare even $5, we would be so grateful. Thanks for reading about this cause that has found its way into my heart. This little guy sure appreciates it too:

To donate, click here.