美国食品药品管理局批准了20多年来首款治疗肌萎缩侧索硬化症(ALS，俗称“渐冻人症”)的新药。
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first new drug for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, in more than two decades.
日前，美国食品药品管理局宣布这款名为Radicava的药物在美国获批使用。
The FDA announced that Radicava has been approved for use in the US.
除此之外，唯一一款专门治疗ALS的药物是1995年在美获批使用的利鲁唑。
The only other drug specifically for the treatment of ALS is riluzole, which was approved for use in the US in 1995.
ALS是一种渐进性神经退行性疾病。ALS会影响大脑和脊髓中控制肌肉运动的神经细胞。
ALS is a progressive, neurodegenerative disease. It affects the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that make muscles work.
这些神经细胞会失去发起和控制肌肉运动的能力，导致患者瘫痪和死亡。
Those nerve cells lose their ability to initiate and control muscle movement, which leads to paralysis and death.
2014年，这种病因“冰桶挑战”再次获得关注。
The disease gained new prominence in 2014, thanks to the Ice Bucket Challenge.
在社交媒体的推动下，“冰桶挑战”活动吸引了数以百万计的人上传自己将冷水从头浇下的视频，仅8周就为ALS协会带来了1.15亿美元的捐款。
Fueled by social media, the campaign prompted millions of people to post videos of themselves dumping cold water on their heads and drove $115 million in donations to the ALS Association in just eight weeks.