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Apr 28, 2016

Alzheimer’s is Not a Normal Part of Aging

How many common, deathly diseases can you name which have gone incurable and not even treatable for 110 years?

**Sketch of neurofibrillary tangles in the brain of Alzheimer’s patient, from an article written in 1911.**

It’s shocking to learn that the first published case of Alzheimer’s Disease was made in 1906 by Dr. Alois Alzheimers. Or that in 1983 during his reign as American president, Ronald Reagan launched a national campaign against the disease. Decades have passed and this disease STILL cannot be prevented, reversed, cured, or even slowed down.

This is the 6th leading cause of death in the USA (affecting approximately 5.4 million Americans) but of the top 10, the only one without a treatment. (Note: There are currently FDA-approved medications for Alzheimer’s but only provide short-term symptomatic relief). But why? Especially since it is cited as the disease that we fear the most.

Through many conversations with medical practitioners specialized in this field, caregivers, and others affected by Alzheimer’s, I found a few common themes.

We Still Think it’s a Normal Part of Aging

Dr. Peter Davies has been professionally focused on dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease for 40 years and he recalls that when he first started, Alzheimer’s was still being misdiagnosed as senility. Since this time, it has been a long and upward battle to debunk the myth that your mind just goes when you age. There is a distinct physiological difference in the brain between someone with Alzheimer’s Disease and someone without this disease — irrespective of age. As we see more and more people living happily and healthily into their 90’s, the general public is now starting to realize that there is a better way.

We Can’t Help but Look Away

It is heartbreaking when your own parent or grandparent forgets your name. Or when they need to be constantly watched so that they don’t wander off or get lost. Or when they get frustrated, angry, and even violent because you don’t understand. To imagine that someone who you once knew as caring, brave, or passionate could become this shell of what they used to be, it is terrifying.

I don’t know anyone affected by Alzheimer’s Disease who can ignore the issue but for those of us lucky enough to have not gone through this yet, it may be too terrifying to think about.

Alzheimer’s is a Death Sentence

At this point in time, Alzheimer’s is a death sentence. There has not been a single case cited where someone had Alzheimer’s and was somehow cured from it. For most of us, such a fact elicits a sense of hopelessness.

By no means am I saying that everybody thinks this way nor am I saying that we’re all completely ignoring the issue. But when you consider that the NIH spends 6X less on Alzheimer’s than on HIV/AIDS and 11X less than on cancer, you have to think that something is preventing us from giving this disease the proper attention that it needs. I encourage everyone reading this to advocate for Alzheimer’s research because there needs to be a sense of urgency. Let’s not let this disease evade us for another decade.