USA2 SPOTLIGHT  

A September 19, 2015 NPR All Things Considered segment featured UsAgainstAlzheimer’s patient advocate Greg O’Brien and his decision to forgo treatment for another life-threatening illness. 

A September 18, 2015 Associated Press article (via SF Gate) highlighted a national push for “dementia friendly” communities. According to the article, “Minnesota’s dementia friendly effort started as part of a 2009 legislative mandate to generate ideas to address the problem. Olivia Mastry, founder of Collective Action Lab, guided the group that came up with a plan for Minnesota and started implementing it in 2013. Now 34 communities are involved.” UsAgainstAlzheimer’s is a co-convener of Dementia Friendly America, the national dementia friendly initiative.  

MUST READS 

A September 21, 2015 The Guardian article reported that one-third of British people born in 2015 will develop dementia. According to the article, “As people live longer than ever before, the numbers with dementia will rise. The latest analysis, commissioned by the charity and carried out by the Office of Health Economics, was released to mark World Alzheimer’s Day. It showed 27% of boys born in 2015 will develop the condition in their lifetime, alongside 37% of girls. Previous research from the same team has estimated that the development of a drug that could delay the onset of dementia by five years would cut the number of cases by a third.”

A September 18, 2015 Breitbart.com opinion piece by James Pinkerton underscored the need for the GOP to develop a cures strategy to defeat diseases like Alzheimer’s. According to Pinkerton, “Huckabee is exactly right. We should declare war on devastating and costly diseases; after all, they have declared war on us. Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) alone is destroying the lives of millions, and AD care is costing the US well over $200 billion a year, headed toward a cumulative $20 trillion by mid-century.”

RESEARCH, SCIENCE, AND TECHNOLOGY 

A September 21, 2015 The Guardian article reported that “Researchers studying the genetic transmission of early onset Alzheimer’s hope their work will result in new treatments that will help people such as Sophie Leggett, whose mother and aunt both developed the disease.” 

A September 18, 2015 U.S. News & World Report article highlighted strategies to possibly delay or head off Alzheimer’s through lifestyle factors. According to Dr. Richard Isaacson, director of the Alzheimer's Prevention Clinic at New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center in New York, “We don't yet know how to prevent Alzheimer's. But lifestyle changes may slow the onset of symptoms."