Eisen Receives Honorary Life Member Award

May 6, 2009 - PRLog -- TORONTO, CANADA.  Dr. Andrew Eisen of Vancouver, BC, received the ALS Society of Canada Honorary Life Member Award at an awards ceremony in Toronto on May 2, 2009, in recognition of his volunteer contributions to the ALS community of Canada.

Eisen, professor emeritus at the University of British Columbia, spent a distinguished career as a neurologist, researcher and clinician with a special interest in ALS. He is also a well-respected writer, teacher and mentor. Recently, he has become interested in collaborative biomedical engineering innovations to improve the quality of life of people living with ALS.

Eisen’s volunteering activities have been just as impressive. In 1980, he was one of the founding directors of the ALS Society of British Columbia, and he has been an active member of the board since its inception. He coordinates the annual ALS symposium and serves on the patient services committee of the ALS Society of BC.

“Andy has been the most vigorous advocate for ALS research and patient care that Canada has seen to date. Andy’s signature in the field has been his steady production of prominent scientific contributions, coupled with his profound respect for ALS patients and their families. Andy has also played a major role in mentoring ‘the next generation’ of physicians and scientists in ALS,” says Dr. Neil Cashman, professor of neurology at the University of British Columbia and director of the ALS program at Vancouver Coastal Health and VCH Research Institute.

Honorary Life Members are named in recognition of an extraordinary volunteer contribution to the ALS community in Canada.

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About ALS:
ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a rapidly progressive and fatal neuromuscular disease that causes the degeneration of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. ALS can affect men and women of any ethnic origin at any age. Approximately 2,500–3,000 Canadians are living with the disease. And 80 per cent of those affected will die within two to five years of diagnosis.

About the ALS Society of Canada:
The ALS Society of Canada, founded in 1977, is the only national voluntary health organization dedicated solely to the fight against ALS and support for those living with ALS. ALS Canada funds research towards a cure for ALS, supports the provincial ALS societies in the provision of quality care for those living with ALS, and provides information to build public awareness about the disease. The vision of the ALS Society of Canada is to find a cure for ALS.