MUST READS

A March 6, 2016 STAT News article highlighted Nancy Reagan’s championship of Alzheimer’s disease and stem-cell research. According to the article, “Despite opposition from many Republican Party leaders, Reagan pushed for stem-cell research, established an Alzheimer’s research institute, and, like first lady Betty Ford before her, talked publicly about her breast cancer treatment when the subject was still considered taboo in polite society…Despite that sensitive issue, Nancy Reagan became an active supporter for Alzheimer’s research. In 1995, the couple established the Ronald and Nancy Reagan Research Institute, affiliated with the Alzheimer’s Association, with Nancy the driving force behind it. Nancy called the illness “a truly long, long goodbye.” During Ronald’s 10-year struggle with the disease, Nancy rarely left his side other than to raise money for Alzheimer’s research or to stand in for him at Republican events.”

A March 5, 2016 Tucson.com article profiled life with Alzheimer’s including obsessive behavior. According to the article, “There was the laundry obsession. Should the dirty laundry box get even to a half load, Joan had to take care of it. Seeing the towels becoming more and more frayed from too much washing, noting the piles of lint building up from the dryer and watching the laundry soap disappear was for me, a frugal person, not easy to ignore. But the alternative, to stop her from doing things, had little appeal. I believe doing “something” is good for her, and I would therefore accept and work with her obsessions. I noted that the gray water going on my citrus was more plentiful than usual, and the laundry didn’t pile up.”

A March 5, 2016 The Tennessean article highlighted how Alzheimer’s “sparks struggles for caregivers.” According to the article, “It's a role some people choose to champion, while others stumble into it. But for all caretakers of patients with dementia or Alzheimer's, there are ups and downs. Mernaugh's experiences, like many others in her shoes, highlight the devastating nature of the diseases — not just on those suffering them directly but those providing care.”

A March 4, 2016 The New York Times interview with Alzheimer’s caregiver Elizabeth Wolf offered a glimpse of what it’s like living with parents suffering from Alzheimer’s. According to the article, “We were very concerned about my mother, too. She was asking us the same questions over and over. I said I’d talk to the teacher whose classroom she worked in as an aide. The teacher said, “Your mother is basically not functioning. She just sits at a table in the back of the classroom and stares out the window.” It had been going on for a long time, and we had all been so focused on my dad we had missed it. We ended up taking her to the same neurologist, and she got an Alzheimer’s diagnosis, too.”

INTERESTING READS FROM AROUND THE WEB

The Detroit News: Group: Millions face overwhelming long-term care costs

The New York Times: Hybrid Long-Term Care Policies Provide Cash and Leave Some Behind

Weill Cornell: Dr. Costantino Iadecola Has Long Been At The Vanguard Of Understanding The Vascular Drivers Of Alzheimer's Disease