USA2 SPOTLIGHT

Watch all of the UsAgainstAlzheimer’s 2018 National Alzheimer’s Summit sessions. The Summit took place September 24-26 in Washington D.C., and included panelists and attendees from diverse communities impacted by Alzheimer's disease.

MUST READS

A September 27, 2018 McKnight’s Senior Living article reported that Congress approved a $425 million funding bill for the National Institutes of Health for Alzheimer's and dementia research. This historic increase brings the annual federal budget for dementia research to more than $2 billion. The bill now moves to President Trump's desk for his signature. Also covered by Genome Web [subscription] and KARK NBC.

RESEARCH AND SCIENCE

A September 25, 2018 Science Daily article reported that a team of researchers pursued the hypothesis that stopping the Caspase-6 enzyme, which is highly activated in Alzheimer’s disease brain lesions and associated with loss of memory, might provide relief from memory loss and stop progressive dementia. “Caspase-1 inhibitors had been developed for treating inflammatory diseases… We decided to test the effects of a particular Caspase-1 inhibitor, called VX-765, against memory loss and brain pathologies in a mouse model of Alzheimer disease,” said lead researcher Dr. LeBlanc of McGill University.

LIFESTYLE

A September 27, 2018 Forbes article looked at seniors and sexual activity. According to the article, “Gerontology and gynocology researchers hold that sexual activity is an important aspect of human function throughout life and that respectful care for older adults, including people with cognitive impairments, requires an understanding of sexual norms and problems… Older men and women, including those with dementia, are having sex, and although the rate of sexual function problems is high, most people, including men and women with lower cognition, regarded sexuality as an important part of life and wanted more of it. Also covered by Third Age.  

PROFILES IN COURAGE

A September 27, 2018 CBS 13 Sacramento article and broadcast segmentfeatured Jackie Coleman, a one-time prominent Sacramento attorney, who has early-onset Alzheimer’s disease. According to the article, ““I wasn’t doing as well at work and I told my doctor… something is wrong with my brain..and she kept saying…oh you’re brain is fine your brain is fine,” Coleman said. But her brain was not fine. Within a matter of months Coleman, a successful disability rights attorney who practiced law for 36 years, found herself struggling to what used to come easy.”

VETERANS SPOTLIGHT

A September 27, 2018 NBC News 4 video and article spotlighted Alex Soffer, who took a photograph of a face once a day for 100 days. Every third picture is black-and-white, representing the one in three seniors who die with Alzheimer’s or another dementia. According to Soffer, whose father, a retired full colonel from the Army, has AD, “Someone who’s diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, that person had a life that was beautiful and deserves to be told. If we don’t share their stories and talk about the beautiful lives they had, then who will? This can be a story of hope, and if we don't advocate and demand change, then it won't change.”

CAREGIVING CORNER

According to a September 26, 2018 U.S. House of Representatives press release, the House voted this week to pass the FY19 Labor-HHS bill, including $5 million for Care Corps grants. The grants fund volunteers who provide non-medical services to seniors and disabled individuals in their homes. “As a caregiver myself, I know how tough it can be to care for a loved one, and how little support is available to those doing this critical work. One of my top priorities, since being elected to Congress nearly 6 years ago, has been to create a caregiving volunteer program,” said Rep. Lujan Grisham.