By Eileen Buckley
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wbfo/local-wbfo-790217.mp3
Amherst, NY – Former Buffalo Mayor James Griffin died from a rare neurological disease. Griffin's family met with reporters late Wednesday afternoon to reveal the cause of his death.
Griffin died in May of Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, or CJD. It is a rare and fatal brain disease. Just one in a million cases are confirmed each year. Members of Griffin's family appeared at the Dent Neurological Institute in Amherst. Maureen Tomczak is one of Griffin's daughters. Tomczak says his illness started last January.
CJD is not contagious. Mad Cow is form of this disease. But Dr. Laszlo Mechtler of Dent Neurological emphasized this was not a case of Mad Cow. Dr. Mechtler says genetic testing also proved it was not Mad Cow.
CJD also mimics other diseases such a dementia, Alzheimer or Parkinson. Doctors say they don't know what caused Griffin's form of CJD and there were no risk factors involved.
The family wants to bring awareness of this rare and deadly disease. They have established the James D. Griffin Fund for CJD research at the Dent Neurological.
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