What Is It Driving You To This Madness

I received an email from a friend of mine who resides in Texas. We haven't seen each other in a few years now, but our memories last a lifetime. In her letter, she asked me for some medical advice. She asked me what i knew of the illness HUNTINGTONS DISEASE. It seems her brother has tested positive for this.
In all honesty, I only remember this particular disease very vividly while in nursing school. So, I asked Mark. My heart goes out to my friend, her family and her brother.
Approximately 30,000 Americans have Huntingtons Disease, and another 200,000 are at risk for inheriting it. It is genetic. A 50-50 chance a child will have it if either of the parents are carriers of the chromosone. Many say this disease is like being stricken with Alzheimer's And Parkinson's simultaneously. Symptoms may include twitching, clumsiness, lapses in judgement and memory, and behavioral changes. Then it becomes difficult to speak or swallow and then mental faculties degenerate. Involuntary movements affect the whole body and ADL's (Activities Of Daily Living), such as dressing and eating become nearly impossible. Usually 10 to 25 years from the onset of symptoms, Huntington's patients die from complications like infection, choking, or heart failure. The suffering is so prolonged and excruciating that mothers have even been driven to kill their affected children.
In June 2002, a 63 year old mother from Georgia, who had cared for her husband through 19 years of Huntington's was now witnessing the disease lay claim to both of her sons. No longer able to bear watching her sons suffer she entered into the room that her sons shared in a nursing home, removed a .25 caliber semiautomatic gun from her purse, and shot each of them behind the ear as they lay asleep in their beds. Calmly,she then walked out into the lobby, sat down on the sofa and awaited for the police to arrive. Police charged her with two counts of murder, but many called it mercy. She pleaded guilty to assisting suicide and was sentenced to five years in prison and five years probation.
My friends brother has been handed a death sentence. All through genetics. Now, they must decide if they will all get tested. My friend, her children and her one other sister. Or, simply live life and not know, until when and if the symptoms start.