May 17, 2016

Today's Top Alzheimer's News

MUST READS

A May 16, 2016 PBS Newshour article highlighted a map that shows each state’s top cause of death, including Alzheimer’s in Washington State. According to the article, “Washington state prepared a plan to address Alzheimer’s disease last year after data indicated it was the state’s third leading cause of death, killing people at a rate two-thirds higher than the national average. Worse, Alzheimer’s was on the rise while other top killers like cancer and heart disease were in decline. But the apparent rise could be attributed to better data. Washington has a more rigorous method of collecting and verifying death data than some other states. States’ totals for all deaths from dementia, which includes Alzheimer’s, suggests that many might not be reporting the disease as carefully as Washington.”

A May 16, 2016 MedicalDaily article highlighted where the 2016 presidential candidates stand on seven health issues, including Alzheimer’s. According to the article, “Trump’s connection to this disease is personal in that his father suffered from Alzheimer’s for six years before dying from pneumonia. The candidate has referred to the disease as a “total top priority for me,” according to U.S. News and World Report, though he has not issued a detailed policy.”

A May 16, 2016 The New York Times article reported that researchers are testing a drug in dogs aimed at prolonging life. According to the article, “The drug, rapamycin, which improved heart health and appeared to delay the onset of some diseases in older mice, may not work the same magic in dogs, for another. There is also a chance it could do more harm than good. “This is just to look for side effects, in dogs,” Ms. Gemmell told Bela’s many well-wishers…While the diseases that now kill most people in developed nations — heart disease, stroke, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, cancer — have different immediate causes, age is the major risk factor for all of them. That means that even treatment breakthroughs in these areas, no matter how vital to individuals, would yield on average four or five more years of life, epidemiologists say, and some of them likely shadowed by illness.”

A May 16, 2016 Chicago Tonight article reported on an arts program that engages Alzheimer’s patients and caregivers. According to the article, “On a recent Monday afternoon, a dozen Alzheimer’s patients and their caregivers were given a private tour of a local art gallery…The exclusive access to the museum was made possible through the ilLUMAnations program, a partnership between LUMA and Northwestern’s Cognitive Neurology and Alzheimer’s Disease Center that uses the art, dance and music to engage Alzheimer’s patients and their caregivers. The program is modeled after New York City’s Meet Me at MoMA program. Darby Morhardt, research associate professor at Northwestern’s CNADC, said she had wanted to replicate New York’s program but was unsure of which institution to partner with.”