leo and me cast parkinson's

Or is it all down to fate? The department of neurology convened a "cluster committee" of experts to investigate but they could find no evidence of an environmental cause. But in the beginning it can be difficult to diagnose. Lucy Atkins. Investigations into incidences of Parkinson's in agricultural communities, for instance, have repeatedly linked high exposure to certain pesticides, herbicides and fertilisers with the disease (one Canadian study of farming communities showed that those who drank well water were dramatically more likely to develop the disease. "We once put together a proposal to set up a team which would investigate all suspected clusters of Parkinson's across the US," Langston says. In 2002, an investigation was launched into Leo and Me after an unusual cluster of Parkinson's disease cases was noted among former cast and crew members of the show. There are, however, some environmental culprits that show up in study after study, says Maestrone. They could, the theory goes, be exposed to more viruses than most people, and this might cause them to develop the disease. Even if the building still exists, toxins once present may have dissipated. "You can find studies that people who spend time with each other are more susceptible to Parkinson's disease and you can find the reverse," Dr Abe Lieberman, medical director for the National Parkinson Foundation in Miami, told the Sun-Times. This difficulty could explain why other suspected Parkinson's clusters have remained enigmatic. The water table, they concluded, had been contaminated by pesticides and herbicides). Fox's first big TV break came with the 1970s Canadian TV sitcom Leo and Me. But what, exactly, in our environment could be causing it? But then again, other investigations, going back over five generations of a family with an astonishingly high rate of Parkinson's led scientists to identify two genes that cause a particular kind of the disease. "The average time from the first symptom appearing to diagnosis is two years," says Langston. Michael J Fox was startlingly unlucky to develop 'the shaking palsy' at such a young age. He told the Chicago Sun-Times that studies have found there to be an increased risk of clusters among certain workers who operate closely together - principally teachers, medical workers, loggers and miners. Is there a link? Leo and Jamie lived on the yacht moored in the harbour. It starred a 15-year-old Michael J. Eventually, you find walking, talking, or doing other simple tasks extremely difficult. Now three people who worked with him on a sitcom during the 70s have revealed they also have the disease. But if we know who's pulling the trigger we might, eventually, be able to dodge the bullets. Can you "catch" Parkinson's? Fox - who looked about 16 years old - was in his 30s when diagnosed. "If Michael J Fox's wife developed Parkinson's disease, I would pay more attention to the cluster theory.". Before the English doctor James Parkinson described its symptoms in 1817, people called it the "shaking palsy". Consequently, says Langston, "most people would currently say that the environment plays a greater role in Parkinson's than genetics". It is, says Dr JW Langston, scientific director and chief executive of the Parkinson's Institute in California, "a progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterised by stiffness of muscles, slowing down of movement and a tremor". Leo and Me is a Canadian television sitcom that was produced in 1977 and aired in 1978. But we didn't find funding.". It is, for instance, extremely difficult (and expensive) to differentiate between a cluster and a coincidence. In 1998, Michael J Fox, the elfin star of the US sitcom, Spin City, lost his Peter Pan image in one startling announcement: he had, he told us, been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease . Or did they perhaps pass the disease to each other? However, since these genes are extremely rare, these studies by no means account for most cases of older-onset Parkinson's. Did they all breathe in some environmental toxin in the studio? And it emerged last week that three other members of this TV crew have also been diagnosed with Parkinson's. In one case, at the University of Pittsburgh, four people who worked in the same department were diagnosed with the disease between 1974 and 1991. And the Michael J Fox Foundation is equally cautious, saying on its website that "most scientists believe a combination of genetic and environmental factors" are to blame. Leo's charm and good luck guided him through tricky but humorous situations and his young sidekick's adept mind helped the pair get out of trouble. It appeared to be genetic bad luck on a grand scale. How could he have a disease normally associated with the elderly? Others maintain that most cases of Parkinson's are caused by the world around us: exposure, perhaps, to some kind of viral infection, or to environmental pollutants. It starred a 15-year-old Michael J. "We were going to be called the 'Cluster Busters'. To most of us this didn't seem possible. The Michael J Fox Foundation, which supports research into Parkinson's, estimates that while "at least one million people in the United States have Parkinson's, many of them, perhaps half, are thought to be undiagnosed". "If there is not enough dopamine, critical nerve cells in the brain, or neurons, start to fire out of control.". Fox) to live with him. Fox stated, "Believe it or not, from a scientific point of view, that's not significant. This article relating to a comedy television series in Canada is a stub. This rate was 30% higher than the general population. Fox and director Don Williams were among the four with the disease, along with a writer and a cameraman. One theory, that has been around for years, is that Parkinson's could be caused - or perhaps triggered - by a viral infection, maybe even influenza. However: "When it comes to most cases of typical older-onset Parkinson's, genetics don't look likely as an explanation.". The disease is certainly not new. Calne said, "It could be coincidence. The cause, of course, is not the cure. "You might trace all the people in a cluster to one apartment block," Langston explains, "then discover that it was torn down in 1982 and made into a mall." Fox, in his television acting debut, playing Jamie, the 12-year-old younger nephew of Leo (Brent Carver).. Leo and Me was produced by Don Eccleston, directed by Don S. Williams and written by Marc and Susan Strange. So right now, as Langston puts it, "there is no smoking gun." Parkinson's 'cluster', https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Leo_and_Me&oldid=1109243829, This page was last edited on 8 September 2022, at 19:16. Dr Donald Calne, of the University of British Columbia Hospital, is treating two of the cast of Leo and Me. And it is even more difficult to establish, from that, what could have caused the outbreak. Leo (Brent Carver) was a carefree, hard-living Italian adventurer who had won a large, decrepit yacht in a poker game, and had taken his orphaned nephew Jamie (Michael J. So what about Fox and the suspected Leo and Me cluster? But it's intriguing, it might be something they were exposed to."[2]. In 1998, Michael J Fox, the elfin star of the US sitcom, Spin City, lost his Peter Pan image in one startling announcement: he had, he told us, been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease seven years previously. "That is the 64 million dollar question," Langston says, "and it is why clusters of the disease are so interesting: they could point to an environmental cause - some common exposure." In 1999 Langston's team published a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association in which they compared instances of the condition in twins with exactly the same genetic make-up and fraternal twins. Leo and Me was produced by Don Eccleston, directed by Don S. Williams and written by Marc and Susan Strange. There is, Langston says, "strong evidence that this kind of Parkinson's is highly genetic". Fox, in his television acting debut, playing Jamie, the 12-year-old younger nephew of Leo (Brent Carver). Dr Paul Maestrone, director of scientific and medical affairs at the American Parkinson's Disease Association, emphasises that "no definitive data exists" to fully explain the causes of Parkinson's. The Leo and Me news merely highlights how little we know about a disease that hits about 1% of people over the age of 50. For more than a century scientists have been arguing about what causes this debilitating, degenerative brain disease. This is because certain cells in your brain are simply fading away. Other investigations into the disease in mining communities have shown certain metals to be guilty parties - aluminium and manganese are the main villains. The outlook, however, is not entirely bleak: Langston believes that there is certainly "a good chance of finding a cause of Parkinson's in the next 10 years". Last edited on 8 September 2022, at 19:16, "Michael J. Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. The problem is that clusters are "incredibly difficult to investigate - you would have to do daunting research to get an answer". The rate of Parkinson's in both types of twin was virtually the same. Doctors understand more about young-onset than they do older-onset Parkinson's. Leo and Me is a Canadian television sitcom that was produced in 1977 and aired in 1978.. His "young-onset" Parkinson's, which affects those under the age of 40, accounts for only 3-4% of cases. It may, it has now emerged, have been more than that. Some believe that the condition is a result of still-to-be-discovered genetic factors. "These cells - the pigmented neurons in the substantia nigra of the brain - produce dopamine, a chemical messenger responsible for transmitting signals within the brain," Langston explains. They concluded that there was little evidence that the cause of the illness in older people (ie those over 50) could be genetic. One thing, though, is beyond debate: Fox was startlingly unlucky to develop it in his 30s. Scientists are arguing over whether this could be classed as a "cluster" of Parkinson's cases - and if so, what could have caused it? Remaining evidence may be scarce, or patchy. [1][2][3], When asked about the cluster by Howard Stern in a September 25, 2013, interview on The Howard Stern Show, Michael J. "[4] Donald Calne, a Vancouver neurologist, said the incidence of Parkinson's in society is about 1 in 300, but that four of the 125 people on the Vancouver set of Leo and Me developed the disease. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. Fox part of B.C. The slowness (known as brady- kinesia) and shaking that we all recognise as a sign of Parkinson's worsen as the condition progresses (usually over a few years). Fox, in our environment could be causing it breathe in some environmental toxin in the beginning it be... Was startlingly unlucky to develop 'the shaking palsy '' shaking palsy ' at such a young.... Rare, these studies by no means account for most cases of older-onset Parkinson 's get. Investigations into the disease cluster committee '' of experts to investigate - would! Types of twin was virtually the same '' of experts to investigate you... 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