Stanley H. Appel, MD, is the Peggy and Gary Edwards Distinguished Endowed Professor for the Treatment and Research of ALS, Department of Neurology, Neurological Institute, Houston Methodist Hospital and Professor of Neurology at Weill Medical College at Cornell University. He is Director of the MDA/ALS Research and Clinical Center at the Methodist Neurological Institute, and a past Director of The National Institute of Aging Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center. He has received numerous awards for his accomplishments in neurology and biochemistry, including the Gold Medal Award in 1997 from Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons for “Distinguished Achievements in Medicine” and the Sheila Essey Award in 2003 from the American Academy of Neurology for “outstanding research in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.”