KANSAS CITY, Mo. — After beating cancer, a 25-year-old former Smithville woman has been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, commonly known as ALS.
Natalie Root’s family says she’s one of the youngest in the country to have the disease, and now she’s moving back to Kansas City to fight for her life.
Root faces a huge challenge, so friends and family were waiting at Kansas City International Airport on Thursday night with flowers and smiles to let her know she has a team behind her. They wore “Team Nat” T-shirts, and held a banner up for her.
Root was diagnosed with thyroid cancer last spring, and she had it removed and went through radiation. Her scans came back cancer free.
But in the meantime, she started developing different issues. Root said she would notice her left leg would go numb, forcing her to fall to the ground. Root was living in Boston, went to the doctor, and eventually was diagnosed with ALS.
“It didn’t blind side me. It’s been about six months and the last couple of months it’s been pretty apparent. It just didn’t have a name but I knew what was happening but it wasn’t like a big surprise. It’s a little crazy but it’s just a day at a time,” Root told Fox 4’s Megan Brilley.
Root will begin physical therapy and research trials at the hospital. For more information on how you can support her, click on this link.
