What is HD? PSA Guest Post
Tim Irwin, 44
May 16, 2016
When my grandfather was going through Huntington disease (HD), there was no help — nobody knew what it was. They lived in a very small village and so they were completely isolated. This is before the Huntington Society of Canada (HSC) existed and started publishing some excellent literature about HD.
I was quite young when my brother and I started to realize that our mom wasn’t like other moms. Things changed over time and she started to have problems with her walking. She also had more and more problems organizing and started making poor decisions. And then there were the emotional outbursts — she could become mean or angry, which was quite disconcerting for us kids.
I’ve been diagnosed with the disease for 13 years. I’ve had to give up a top-performing sales career and start a new chapter in life as an HD fighter, advocate, volunteer and research participant. I participate in all the Huntington disease research that I can qualify for, and I do everything I can to support the Huntington Society in any way possible. I’m throwing the kitchen sink at this thing.
Imagine what it would mean if you could delay onset by 10 or 20 years. That’s why it was incredibly encouraging that there were five new clinical trials this year. I believe HD research is kind of the lead domino in a chain that might knock down things like Alzheimer’s, ALS, multiple sclerosis and a whole bunch of other diseases.
We’re really getting close. Together, we’re going to cure HD.
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Huntington disease (HD) is an inherited neurological disorder that is currently fatal and incurable. It creates emotional, cognitive and physical symptoms. To learn more about HD and how the Huntington Society of Canada supports families affected by the disease, visit www.huntingtonsociety.ca/psa-campaign.