TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Lorenzo Proved Doctors Wrong By Staying Alive

ADVERTISEMENT

The Associated Press

Published: May 31, 2008

WASHINGTON - The man whose parents' battle to save him from a nerve disease was portrayed in the movie "Lorenzo's Oil" died Friday at his home in Virginia, having lived more than 20 years longer than doctors had predicted.

Lorenzo Odone, who doctors predicted would die in childhood, died one day after his 30th birthday, said his father, Augusto.

Odone came down with aspiration pneumonia recently after getting food stuck in his lungs, his father said. He began bleeding heavily, and before an ambulance reached their home, he was dead, the father said.

"He could not see or communicate, but he was still with us," Augusto Odone said Friday. "He did not suffer. ... That's the important thing."
Lorenzo Odone was found at age 6 to have adrenoleukodystrophy, or ALD. His doctors told his parents the disease - caused by a genetic mutation that causes the neurological system to break down - would lead to death in two years.
Susan Sarandon and Nick Nolte starred as Michaela and Augusto Odone in 1992's "Lorenzo's Oil," which recounted their efforts to formulate the oil they said helped their son fight the neurological disease.

A study published in 2005, based on research with 84 boys, showed that a treatment made from olive and rapeseed oils - patented by Augusto Odone - can prevent onset of the symptoms for most boys who receive an ALD diagnosis.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT