USA2 SPOTLIGHT

A September 27, 2019 UsAgainstAlzheimer’s statement from UsA2’s Kelly O'Brien, Brain Health Partnership Lead, in relation to the release of the Alzheimer’s Disease International’s 2019 World Alzheimer’s Report, which found that 62 percent of healthcare providers worldwide think that dementia is a part of normal aging. According to O'Brien, “Age remains the No. 1 risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease, but it is important to know that as recently as May of this year, the World Health Organization issued a report stating clearly that ‘dementia is not a natural or inevitable consequence of aging.’ The WHO recommended ways to proactively reduce overall risk of developing dementia, including exercise, eating well, managing chronic health conditions, and staying socially engaged.”

MUST WATCH

A September 25, 2019 Fox 13 broadcast segment explained the MemorEM device, an experimental cap which is being used to treat Alzheimer’s disease. Janet Sizeler has been receiving treatment, via cell phone waves beamed into her brain from the cap, which she believes is working. According to Sizeler, “If they try to take my hat away from me, there's going to be a battle. I feel that strongly about it.”

BRAIN HEALTH

A September 25, 2019 The Philadelphia Inquirer article spotlighted the work of Michael Verde, who brings art workshops to people with dementia via his non-profit, Memory Bridge. He recently spoke to caregivers about the imperative of addressing loneliness and loss of community for people with dementia. “They lose their feeling of belonging and mattering in a social body… Helping them is not the same thing as loving us. We are craving a kind of intimacy that friendly and nice and tolerant probably doesn’t capture,” said Verde.

DEMENTIA AND THE ARTS

A September 25, 2019 The Oregonian article featured “Shadows and Light, an Alzheimer’s Journey,” a choir piece about Alzheimer’s disease. Written by Portland composer Joan Szymko, at the request of Eugene Concert Choir director Diane Retalick, the piece is a 70-minute oratorio in 16 movements. According to the article, “To acknowledge that Alzheimer’s experiences aren’t exclusively bleak, Szymko worked in “moments of respite, and a big exhale where we’re able to laugh at some aspects of the reality” of the disease.” “I want anyone in the midst of a tragic story to see that the thing that makes us human is our ability and need to connect, that that which abides is love,” said Szymko.

MUST LISTEN

A September 24, 2019 CU Anschutz 360 podcast spoke with Alzheimer’s researcher Huntington Potter, PhD about the current state of research and work toward treatments. Potter was recruited to launch an AD center on the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, which became the first in Denver (seven years ago). According to Potter, “If we live to be 85, almost half of us will have Alzheimer’s disease. It’s not as though one ethnic group or another is protected or guaranteed to get it… I recommend that the most important thing is to not lose heart … many scientists around the world are trying their best to develop new treatments.”