The authors are in a life and death struggle against a terrible disease, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, which is referred to as ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease. If you or a loved one have been diagnosed with ALS, then you need to read this book. The Deanna Protocol(R) program was discovered by Dr. Tedone, Deanna's father, only after failing, again and again, with everything that he tried. The massage, non-exhausting exercise and core supplements are inexpensive and available without prescription from many suppliers. The program works for many ALS patients. It is not a cure; however, it provides a better quality of life and has been shown in ALS mice to extend life and improve motor skills. The rate of progression of ALS symptoms reported in ALSFRS scores, is markedly reduced in those adhering to the Deanna Protocol(R) program. There are few side effects reported, and those are manageable for most, if the program is phased in, gradually, over time. The main stream pharmaceutical giants and neurologists have taken little notice or remain skeptical about any program targeting metabolic support of motor neurons. However, we are winning over some of the skeptics, when they see, first-hand, how much their own patients are benefiting from the Deanna Protocol(R) program. An investigation at the University of South Florida has shown that SOD1-G93A mice live longer and better when on the core supplements of the Deanna Protocol(R) program. To our knowledge, the Deanna Protocol(R) program is the only program tested on these particular mice that has ever shown a statistically significant extension of life compared to controls. We were not surprised, because the program already showed effectiveness in Deanna and many other patients with ALS (PALS). More surprising to us is the anecdotal evidence that the core supplements of the Deanna Protocol(R) program helps patients with other neurological conditions, such as Alzheimer's. An investigation of these other conditions is beyond our foundation's capability. We don't have sufficient assets to meet the needs for research into ALS. Much of the costs of the progress made to date have been borne by the Tedone's and a short list of donors to Winning the Fight, Inc., a foundation established by the Tedone family. If the foundation had more money, the research could progress much faster in ALS and other neurological conditions could be included, which have shown benefits to patients from taking the core supplements of the Deanna Protocol(R) program. The authors are convinced that there is a common denominator among many neurological conditions that could, potentially, benefit from the Deanna Protocol(R) program or some program based on the core supplements of the Deanna Protocol(R) program. Possibly, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, stroke, traumatic brain injury and other neurological conditions could all share a common pathway for neuron cell death, a lack of energy in the cells. The authors believe that one of the supplements taken as part of the Deanna Protocol(R) program provides energy to distressed cells in which normal cellular metabolism has been disrupted. From research completed after the manuscript for this book was written, Dr. Tedone believes that many of these neurological conditions could benefit from a program tailored toward keeping more of the neurons from dying. This Preface and an Afterword have been added to the soft cover edition of this book. If you are interested in our efforts to discover a metabolic program for benefiting the health of patients with neurological conditions resulting in neuron cell death, then turn to the Afterword for a discussion on our evolving hypothesis. Also, the Deanna Protocol(R) program continues to evolve over time as more research is conducted and more PALS report their results to us. Please go to www.winningthefight.org for the latest information and recommendations.
