USA2 SPOTLIGHT

Please join us for our livestream of the UsAgainstAlzheimer's 2017 National Alzheimer’s Summit: Uniting Communities for a Cure - today, Tuesday, October 3rd and Wednesday, October 4th. Tune-in at 8:45am (EST) this morning for The Second Annual Alzheimer's Disparities Symposium: Diversifying the Race for a Cure & Care. This full-day program brings together disparities-focused health, policy and minority community stakeholders with caregivers, researchers and industry leaders to address the growing impact of Alzheimer’s on communities of color through the development of health promotion strategies, patient-focused research collaboration, and strategic storytelling and advocacy. 

An October 2, 2017 statement from UsAgainstAlzheimer's featured UsA2’s annual National Alzheimer’s Summit: Uniting Communities for a Cure this week in Washington, DC. The Summit unites philanthropists, scientists and researchers, industry, communities of color, women, veterans and others to power a bipartisan action-oriented movement to spur the medical progress needed to defeat Alzheimer’s by the US national goal of 2025. According UsA2 Co-Founder and Chairman George Vradenburg, “The scale, cost, and impact of Alzheimer’s make it one of this century’s greatest health, economic, and social challenges. Over 150 million people are estimated to be experiencing this disease globally, as victims or caregivers, at an annual cost of well over one percent of global economic output. And those numbers are rising. Yet, to date, we have not seen the level of national or global urgency that should accompany a health crisis of this magnitude. We’re convening this summit because accelerating movement toward an Alzheimer’s cure is not an option, it’s an immediate necessity.”

According to an October 2, 2017 Air Force Times article, veterans face a higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease than civilians who never served in the military. Data compiled by VeteransAgainstAlzheimer’s finds that post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury and neurotrauma associated with military service all significantly increase the risk of developing AD. More than 750,000 older veterans nationwide suffer from Alzheimer’s or associated dementias. “This is a looming pandemic, and promises to be the health issue of the 21st century,” said UsAgainstAlzheimer’s Co-Founder and Chairman George Vradenburg.

MUST READS

An October 3, 2017 STAT News article highlighted the struggles of Brian Kuronis, a patient advocate living with early-onset Alzheimer’s. According to the article, “He is living alone, after a nine-year relationship broke up as his memory deteriorated. He had to give away his beloved dogs. He loves fly-fishing, but forgets how. And he is fast running out of money. Kursonis hopes he can find a way to earn a living as an advocate, but if money doesn’t come in soon, he won’t be able to make the December rent on his spartan apartment in a suburb outside Charlotte, N.C. He fears he will soon be homeless, his best option the men’s shelter in downtown Charlotte.”
 

An October 2, 2017 The Sacramento Bee article by Kent Pollock, retired journalist and journalism professor, speaks about his own experience with dementia and the humor it requires to get by with minimized frustration. According to Pollock, “Sometimes dementia actually provides laughable moments, like when the cellphone you have been frantically searching for rings in your pocket.”