Nancy O’Dell, Tony Proudfoot, Angela Lansbury: something in common
April 24, 2008 by Marijke Durning, RN
Filed under Diseases & Conditions
What do Access Hollywood’s Nancy O’Dell, former Montreal Alouette defensive half-back, Tony “the Staplegun” Proudfoot, and actress Angela Lansbury all have in common? All three have been touched by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) or Lou Gehrig’s disease.
Nancy O’Dell just revealed to People that her 74-year-old mother was diagnosed with ALS this past November. Tony Proudfoot, an accomplished athlete, physical education teacher and life saver, was diagnosed with ALS last year at the age of 57 years. Tony played an instrumental role during the Dawson College shooting in September of 2006. He was the person you could see in the news clips, tending to a wounded person outside on the street in front of the college while the police were trying to find out if the gunman was still inside the building. Angela Lansbury’s sister, Isolde Denhamm died of ALS in 1987.
Tony began feeling the effects through being more emotional than usual and his speech began to slur. As a football broadcaster on Montreal radio station CJAD for the Alouette games, rumors were starting that there was something wrong, maybe even drunk. That must have been hard for such a hard-working man. Tony has another claim to fame too. In 1977, as the Alouettes were playing for the Grey Cup (final game in the Canadian Football League, CFL), the ground was too slippery, so Tony used a staple gun on his team-mates’ shoes, allowing them to go ahead and win the cup – and for Tony to be forever known as Tony “the Staplegun” Proudfoot.
In Nancy’s case, her mother was diagnosed and has since lost her ability to speak. Although there are many frightening aspects to ALS, one must be the knowledge that as your body is robbed of its muscle function, your mind is as sharp as it was before the illness set in.
Angela Lansbury, in honor of her sister, will be starring in several radio and television public service announcements to launch the ALS Association’s Cure ALS campaign.
There is no cure for ALS, treatment is now focused on slowing down its progress. There is research going on in Montreal that is looking at the unusual incidence of ALS among football players. In fact, Tony’s room-mate from his football playing days, Larry Uteck, died from ALS in December 2002. He was 49 and fought the disease for four years.
Living with ALS doesn’t necessarily mean living with pain – but one of the problems that is associated with the disease is muscle cramping and that can be very painful.
If you want more information on ALS, you can visit these sites:
The ALS Society of Canada (also has a section on helping children cope)
ALS Association (US)
You can also visit the Muscular Dystrophy Association’s ALS site. MDA is the world leader in ALS research. MDA covers 43 neuromuscular diseases, one of which is ALS.
May is ALS awareness month. Please help spread the word.
~~~~~~~~~
My heart breaks for each and every person who is either diagnosed with ALS or has a loved one who must travel the ALS journey. My husband was diagnosed 11/30/94 (a date I will NEVER forget) and stoically battled the disease until January 5, 1996. He was 32 years old when he passed. He was such a wonderful man, too good for this earth, I believe. He left our two daughters, aged 13 and 9 at the time, which broke his heart. The disease is ravaging, to say the least. People with ALS lose the ability to move, speak, eat…and all the while they are fully aware of the losses they face each day. It is a cruel fate that befalls so many wonderful people. To Nancy O’Dell, my prayers are with you, your Mom, and your entire family. May God’s grace abound and may you be blessed with peace.
Laurie, thank you for visiting and leaving your comment. Your husband was so young – I can’t imagine how painful that must have been for you, and still is sometimes, I’m sure.
Marijke
To Nancy, my sympathy goes out to you ,and your family.My mom was diagnosed with bulbar ALS 1 1/2 yrs. ago,sure remember the day,we were told at the one hospital,[+went the whole test]then told to get her in Penn,Phila,Pa. Had to wait3 months.Then a very extensive nerve test,same outcome. Very scared,life has radically changed.Will spare the details….but i try to be there for her,she has been in bad shape for a while,4+ 5 people coming in for care including Hospice,my one brother moved in,the other gets her up.She can’t move her arms,+ write,[a little swallowing,feeding tube,no talking for over a yr.BUT the best attitude,soooooo incredible,i lean on her yet?!She's 80 + i'm 54,i need her soo much!!She is Always there for us [3 of us].Thinking of you and how you handled it ,still tryingto learn how to deal with all this.Thanks to who ever else reads this,and has dealt with ALS.