Visitors were privileged to attend a moving panel discussion facilitated by members of the dedicated Weinberg ALS Center care team and to hear from Kevin Yam, Carol Penjuke, Beverly Cocco, and Gregory Petry, individuals living with ALS who generously and courageously shared their stories and personal experiences. Sadly, Carol Penjuke passed away just a few weeks following the event.
The Weinberg Center, an ALS Association Certified Treatment Center of Excellence and a member of the NEALS Consortium, integrates research with clinical care in a patient-centric program designed to expand effective ALS treatment options. Patients are integral to the Center’s programming, participating in research and clinical trials. Its offerings combine a multidisciplinary clinic, a clinical trial program with interventional and observational trials, and a research unit including five core and two affiliated laboratories.
"Our patients are our daily inspiration,” says Piera Pasinelli, PhD, the Frances and Joseph Weinberg Professor of Neuroscience and founder and director of the Weinberg ALS Center. “They know that supporting and participating in research, even clinical trials, is not for themselves, but they want to help the patients of the future.”Â
Philanthropy is critical to the Weinberg Center’s ongoing mission. “A disease that doesn’t have a cure is a shared cause,” Pasinelli explains. “ALS is an orphan disease, often misunderstood and financially demanding for everyone involved, from patients to researchers. Philanthropy helps us invest in technology that improves care, provides better access to trials, and enhances quality of life. In the lab, it enables us to invest in new techniques and technologies that allow our research to continue.”