The tenth episode of Sabanci Foundation's "Turkey's Changemakers" tells the story of Alper Kaya.
Born in 1961, Alper Kaya is an optometrist who has been suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, for the last 20 years. While fighting against this disease, he also strived to raise public awareness about ALS to provide ALS patients with moral support by sharing his experiences with them.
ALS is a deadly and slowly progressing disease that damages the neural system. It is also known to be the disease that Stephen Hawking suffers from.
Kaya can only talk by force, swallow and move only one of his fingers. He can type on a special keyboard, and that is how he shares recent information about the disease with ALS patients. He also talks to patients on the phone and provides them with moral support.
While fighting against a cruel disease, he still strives to make a difference in the lives of other patients by encouraging them to participate in social life.
