Ep. 47: Indu Navar, EverythingALS

Ep. 47: Indu Navar, EverythingALS Kate Cherichello 29:28

Losing the love of her life to ALS was today’s guest’s impetus to create a non-profit with a goal to change the outcome for future patients.

ALS is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. It has been known for a hundred years, yet minimal progress has been made throughout this entire time. Indu Navar and her non-profit EverythingALS are making incredible strides to change that.

There are no tests to diagnose ALS so patients suffer for years not knowing what is wrong. And even if they are diagnosed, there are no treatments. Life expectancy is only 2-5 years.

EverythingALS is conducting research using AI technology to spot and track signs of ALS. The non-profit is also partnering with pharmaceutical and other companies to help promote accelerated development of digital trackers for neurological diseases, with the hope of one day having a test and a cure.

With a background in software, Indu has been on the ground floor for years in making advancements in software and data. In 2014 she and her husband Peter decided to start their own consulting company. As she states, “Life was wonderful.”.

Then a neurology appointment led to the doctor simply stating to ‘’wait and see how bad it gets.’’ This is a huge issue with ALS: Often by the time it is finally diagnosed, it is quite progressed. How can there not be more to do along the way to help change the outcomes of this disease?

So Indu and her team work each and everyday to bring more research, results, and hope for people with ALS.

Hear Indu speak about the specifics on how this nonprofit works with scientists and medical experts to discover new ways to identify and treat ALS. She also shows a beautiful wisdom in commenting on death and the pain of losing her husband. Indu stresses what she is doing is “passion, not work.”

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