The man who discovered DNA, Frederick Miescher, was a young physician who worked in the laboratory of physiological chemistry of eminent scientist Felix Hoppe-Seyler. At the time of the discovery he was 25 years old and had not long graduated from his studies.
A little over 5,600 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with ALS each year. (That's a new victim every 90 minutes.) It is estimated that as many as 30,000 Americans have the disease at any given time. 80% of the people with ALS are men and 93% of patients are Caucasian. Most people who develop ALS are between the ages of 40 and 70, with an average age of 55 at the time of diagnosis. However, cases of the disease do occur in persons in their twenties and thirties.
1 Annually, ALS is responsible for two deaths per 100,000 people. 2  The average life expectancy of a person with ALS is two to five years from time of diagnosis. 3  With recent advances in research and improved medical care, many patients are living longer, more productive lives.