15-Year-Old Battling ALS

David Hall, Reporter

david@southerntorch.com

15-year-old Branson Bearden is undergoing the process of an ALS diagnosis. Saturday at the Walk to Defeat ALS in Scottsboro, family and friends joined to support Bearden.

“We have recently gotten the possible diagnosis of ALS, so we are still searching for answers and holding onto hope,” Branson’s mother Jessica Bearden stated.

ALS is a disease that causes nerve cells to break down which reduces functionality in the muscles they supply. Medication and therapy can slow ALS, but there currently is no cure.

Branson’s family noticed something was wrong this spring.

“We got in at the end of the summer to see a neurologist, and we immediately knew we were looking at something rare and something serious by the way everyone was reacting at the doctor’s offices,” said Jessica Bearden.

For the past few years, Branson has played sports, including football. While he no longer competes on the football field, he regularly runs cross country.

According to Branson’s family, his diagnosis process is far from over. They are searching for alternative treatments and working on getting Branson into Mayo Clinic.

Thousands of Americans are impacted by ALS every year. While there is no cure, many are raising money for the search for one. Saturday’s walk in Scottsboro helped further that goal.