As reported by Zachary Matson, Daily Gazette:
Union College student Alex Askenazy told his friends he planned to design new drugs and medical treatments — possibly for epilepsy, the disorder that claimed his life on Oct. 8.
“He wanted tattoos of the molecular structure of his new drugs,” said Union sophomore Erick Landreth, who lived with Askenazy during their freshmen year. Phil Askenazy, Alex’s dad, said the tattoo claim might have been a little puffery.
Askenazy died in his Union dorm from Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy (SUDEP), a little-understood complication of epilepsy that affects about 1 in 1,000 adults with the disorder each year. But his friends are hoping to do what they can to carry out Askenazy’s mission, specifically by raising around $4,000 — so far — for SUDEP research.