Out And About With UsAgainstAlzheimer's In July 2017: Uniting Communities For A Cure

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August 1, 2017 - Elizabeth Plant
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July was a busy month for UsAgainstAlzheimer’s. We’ve been to many places, including: London for the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference (AAIC), and to Phoenix, Kansas City, and of course Washington D.C. and featured in the news.

We hope that you enjoy the second monthly installment where we will highlight what the UsAgainstAlzheimer’s board and staff have been up to around the U.S. and the world to stop Alzheimer’s.

London

UsAgainstAlzheimer’s had a major presence at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference (AAIC) in London where we presented an analysis of treatments in the drug pipeline and led important conversations to speed the path to a cure.

ResearchersAgainstAlzheimer’s presented their pipeline analysis that twenty-seven Alzheimer’s drugs in Phase III clinical trials and eight drugs in Phase II clinical trials may launch in the next five years. WomenAgainstAlzheimer’s hosted a breakfast as part of our commitment to the Global Alliance on Women’s Brain Health. Alzheimer’s, Dementia, Patient and Caregiver Powered Research Network discussed groundbreaking progress in patient and care partner engagement in clinical research. This first-of-its-kind initiative, is a partnership between UsAgainstAlzheimer’s, Mayo Clinic, The University of California at San Francisco, and University of Florida. Richard Mohs, Chief Scientific Officer at The Global Alzheimer’s Platform Foundation (GAP), one of our sister enterprises, gave an update on GAP’s two new clinical studies that are part of its efforts to improve recruitment and speed up clinical trials.

This gathering is a testament to our collaboration and dedication via @WomenAgstAlz #AAIC17 pic.twitter.com/K3fycDTtc9

— UsAgainstAlzheimer's (@UsAgainstAlz) July 17, 2017

George Vradenburg took part in the above activities and also held meetings of the Global CEO Initiative on Alzheimer’s Disease on major research, regulatory and investment priorities; with our GAP sponsors and research partners; and with our European partners in EPAD to compare notes on progress.

Global CEOi leaders gather to discuss priorities with Alzheimers via @vradenburg3 #AAIC2017 pic.twitter.com/4f0qt4Qku6

— UsAgainstAlzheimer's (@UsAgainstAlz) July 18, 2017

Phoenix

LatinosAgainstAlzheimer's hosted a workshop, supported by Merck, at the UnidosUS Health Summit in Phoenix, Arizona with researchers, patients, and local community partners about the importance of engaging Latinos in precision medicine and research.

Kansas City

Forget Me Not, an award-winning play sponsored by AfricanAmericansAgainstAlzheimer’s and the Global Alzheimer’s Platform, presented two showings in Kansas City. The play focuses on increasing Alzheimer’s awareness in African American communities.

In The News

Why are women and African Americans more likely to get Alzheimer’s? Jill Lesser, UsAgainstAlzheimer’s Board Member and President of WomenAgainstAlzheimer’s, joined NPR’s 1A to talk about the wide disparities in Alzheimer’s.

Jill Lesser authored an op-ed for Medscape Nurses (registration required), sharing the results of a joint WomenAgainstAlzheimer’s and National Association of Nurse Practitioners in Women’s Health survey that found that 30 percent of nurse practitioners do not raise brain health issues with patients. The findings illuminate a general lack of understanding about dementia, and a reluctance to speak directly about this issue with patients who exhibit signs of memory loss, agitation or confusion.

About the Author

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Elizabeth Plant

Elizabeth is the former manager of the Alzheimer's Talks teleconference series, having coordinated electronic actions associated with our mobilization campaign. Elizabeth has held senior positions at education non-profits in the District of Columbia. She served as Deputy Director of DC Children First and previously was the Senior Director, Program, Legislative Affairs and Education Policy of the Washington Scholarship Fund (WSF).