Kennedy's Disease Association

A Public Benefit, Non-Profit Organization

"KDA is One SUPER, Non-Profit Organization."

Our Focus Remains on Research, Education and Support

The Kennedy’s Disease Association has worked to educate others about this lesser-known disease and to support clinical research efforts. We distributed information to more than 10,000 neurologists to help them recognize clinical signs and symptoms of Kennedy’s Disease.

Will my child be born with this DNA defect?

It takes an enormous amount of money to fund research…more than any of us can afford alone, but together, we are capable of great accomplishments. We are searching for available foundation grants, but the process is lengthy. We need researchers to continue their work, and it is only the KDA that makes funding this disease a priority.

Kennedy’s Disease Knows No Boundaries...

It is passed on from generation to generation in families worldwide. Males generally inherit the disease symptoms and females are the carriers. The defect is in the ‘X’ Chromosome that makes testosterone almost a poison to his body.

What is Kennedy's Disease?

Kennedy’s Disease (spinal and bulbar muscular atrophy) is an adult-onset “X” linked inherited disease with symptoms usually beginning to appear between the ages of 30 and 50. However, onset has also been reported as early as in the teens and as late as the 60s.

Scientific Review Board

Dr. Kenneth Fischbeck

National Institute of Neurological Diseases and Stroke

A leading researcher, professor and educator on the subject of Kennedy's Disease; a co-discoverer of the Spinal Bulbar Muscular Atrophy gene.0

Dr. Diane Merry

Thomas Jefferson University

Dedicates research team to Spinal Bulbar Muscular Atrophy.

Dr. Al La Spada

University of California, San Diego

Co-discovered the Spinal Bulbar Muscular Atrophy gene and continues to research Kennedy's Disease.

Dr. Andrew P. Lieberman

University of Michigan

Researcher in the area of inherited neurodegenerative diseases. Director of the Neuropathology Core for the Michigan Alzheimer's Disease Research Center.

Dr. J. Paul Taylor
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN
Research focus is on reducing the morbidity and mortality associated with neurological disease.

Patient Liaison -

Ed Meyertholen

A professor of Biology at Austin Community College. Individual living with Kennedy's Disease.

Liaison -

Todd Allen

Devotes innumerable hours to reading about and understanding Kennedy's Disease

Individual living with Kennedy's Disease