Must reads and watch 

• A September 28, 2014 CSPAN interview with Washington Post columnist Sally Quinn highlighted her work as a dementia caregiver for her husband Ben Bradlee. According to Quinn, "He was diagnosed [with dementia] a while ago, but it became obvious that he had a serious problem about two years ago. So I began to tell people. I am writing a memoir now for HarperOne and I will write about it a lot in that. ... He does know who I am, yes. We actually have called in hospice care this week. And you know it’s interesting because I thought, ‘Oh, well, this is going to be not so hard. Because Ben ... [will] just gradually lose his memory and he’ll ask me to repeat things ... But it’s been the most horrible experience I have ever had, until recently ... [H]e’s still at home, I still have him sleeping in the bed with me, and I will until the end."
• A September 27, 2014 The Telegraph article (UK) reported that "Imperial College has discovered how to turn off an enzyme which is driving many incurable diseases" including Alzheimer's. According to the article, "The NMT enzyme makes irreversible changes to proteins which stop damaged cells from dying and, instead, speeds up their replication, causing cancer. It can be responsible for cancers become resistant to chemotherapy. It is also known to be involved in Alzheimer's disease, although scientists are unclear as to how it works.But now researchers have identified more than 100 proteins that the enzyme interacts with and have discovered a molecule which acts like an ‘off switch.’The breakthrough could lead to a new generation of drugs which can be used for a number of different diseases."
• A September 27, 2014 Citizens-Times (NC) opinion piece by Wally Bowen underscored the need to invest in medical research to stop diseases like Alzheimer's. According to Bowen, "But other voices are starting to be heard. In July's "Science,'' former GOP Congressman John Edward Porter issued a stern rebuke to deficit hawks: "Cutting research is not a pathway to deficit reduction; it is a pathway to increased health threats, lost lives, and economic insecurity." Porter cites data showing investments in medical research generate returns of 25 to 40 percent and can help to reduce the deficit. "If a treatment became available in 2015 that delayed the onset of Alzheimer's disease by five years," writes Porter, "annual Medicare and Medicaid spending would be $42 billion less by 2020." Instead, cuts to medical research are delaying cures and driving talented scientists out of the field, warns NIH Director Francis Collins."