Meet ALS “Treat Us Now” Steering Committee Member Tom Murphy
You may remember our interview with ALS advocate Debra Quinn from last fall. Today, we’d like to introduce you to another ALS patient activist in our midst: Tom Murphy, a PatientsLikeMe member since January 2011. As part of the ALS Treat Us Now nonprofit group, Tom and several other ALS patients around the country have launched a petition on Change.org that’s gaining steam. Their goal? 20,000 signatures. Addressed to “corporate citizens, FDA executives and neurologists,” the petition asks that “compassionate use” drugs be made available to ALS patients now. What this means is that Tom and the Treat Us Now group want promising Phase II drugs showing safety and efficacy to be made available to ALS patients prior to FDA approval. The reason is simple. ALS patients, who face an average life expectancy of two to five years following diagnosis, don’t have time to wait. Check out our interview with Tom to learn how he became part of ALS Treat Us Now and what two experimental drugs his group is focused on in particular. 1. How did you get involved in the “Treat Us Now” movement? The ALS community seems to be a very close-knit group of people who readily …
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