MUST READS

A February 25, 2015 The Guardian opinion piece by Dr. Ara Darzi underscored the urgent need for increased Alzheimer's and dementia research funding. According to Dr. Darzi, "We cannot allow this to continue. The stakes are too high. Without effective treatments, the growth of dementia among ageing populations will overwhelm health and caring services and impose an impossible burden – social and financial – on future generations. The Wish report warns of a “global economic crisis”…Bringing new funds into dementia research is vital. Leaders of the G8 countries agreed at the 2013 summit in Northern Ireland to increase resources and the UK government pledged to double its funding to £32m a year by 2025. But additional sources must be found…We must hire more scientists, diversify our approach, cover gaps in research and identify opportunities. Without co-ordinated action the future of health systems will be under threat." Professor the Lord Darzi of Denham is Paul Hamlyn chair of surgery at Imperial College, London, chair of the London Health Commission, and executive chair of the World Innovation Summit for Health.

A February 24, 2015 Washington Post article reported that "A relatively simple skin test could eventually lead to the early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases." According to the article, "The study — which is to be presented at next month’s meeting of the American Academy of Neurology’s annual meeting in Washington, D.C. — suggests that minimally invasive skin biopsies could detect the presence of abnormal proteins associated with the two most frequently diagnosed degenerative diseases of the brain. The research could open yet another avenue toward finding less intrusive and relatively inexpensive biomarkers for two neurodegenerative diseases, the scientists said. Other studies, for example, have suggested that eye scans and smell tests could be used to identify Alzheimer’s in its early stages." Also reported on by BBC and Time among others. 

MINORITY SPOTLIGHT

A February 25, 2015 People article profiled one Latina's decision to seek an Alzheimer's diagnosis and to participate in a clinical trial. According to the article, "But it wasn't until after her mother, Sonia Cardona, now 59, tested positive for one of the three genes that causes early-onset familial Alzheimer's that she found out how prevalent it really was. In August 2013, one of her mom's sisters came from Puerto Rico to lay out their family history to Dr. Beau Ances, her mother's neurologist at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis…She also made a gut-wrenching decision: to enroll in the Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer Network, an observational study spearheaded by the Washington University School of Medicine, and get tested to find out if she carries one of the genes herself…If she tests positive, she hopes to be enrolled in the clinical trial run by the DIAN Trials Unit, which is testing two promising drugs."

ADVOCACY SPOTLIGHT

A February 21, 2015 YouTube video by ActivistAgainstAlzheimer's advocate Michael Ellenbogen called on President Obama and Congress to make Alzheimer's a priority issue.