CHICAGO – Former Illinois Comptroller Dawn Clark Netsch – who spent 18 years serving in the state senate and was the first woman to run on a major ticket for governor in Illinois – has been diagnosed with a fatal nerve disorder.

"Basically it's ALS, Lou Gehrig's disease," Netsch said in an interview with WMAQ-TV and the Chicago Sun-Times.

ALS, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, is a degenerative disorder that weakens the nerves and makes it difficult to walk, swallow and speak, eventually leading to paralysis and death.