USA2 SPOTLIGHT

Join “Evaluating Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria in Clinical Trials,” convened by the Duke-Robert J. Margolis, MD, Center for Health Policy at Duke University and supported by a cooperative agreement with FDA, on April 16, 2018 in Washington, D.C. UsAgainstAlzheimer’s Board member, journalist and bestselling author Meryl Comer is a panelist at this public event, bringing the stakeholder community together to discuss a variety of topics related to eligibility criteria in clinical trials, their potential impact on patient access to investigational drugs, and how they might facilitate the enrollment of a diverse patient population. Register here.

MUST READS

A March 30, 2018 Los Angeles Times article featured a panel discussion, moderated by journalist and Alzheimer’s advocate Maria Shriver, on ways to help prevent dementia and AD. Shriver’s Move for Minds initiative is focused on prevention. According to the article, “It would seem, Shriver said, that we have all become so obsessed with our bodies that we have forgotten to take care of our brains: "I was speaking to the head of neurology up at Stanford who said 'My waiting room is filled with 70-year-olds with the bodies of 40-year-olds and no minds.’” Is that a chilling image, or what?”

According to a March 29, 2018 Parade article, “General Hospital” is tackling the subject of Alzheimer’s disease. Head writer Shelly Altman is weaving AD into a storyline. “I can get off on philosophical tangents sometimes, and I was thinking about how unfortunate it is when a parents dies when there’s still unresolved issues, but in the case of a parent with Alzheimer’s, they may still be living, and you’re faced with the fact that you may never resolve some of those issues,” said Altman.

CLINICAL TRIAL SPOTLIGHT

An April 1, 2018 GEN (Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News) article highlighted an Alzheimer’s drug candidate called bryostatin, from Neurotrope BioScience biopharma, for patients with moderate to severe AD. According to Charles S. Ryan, JD, PhD, “While current therapies on the market treat only the symptoms of AD, Neurotrope’s latest trial with bryostatin showed promising signs of sustained clinical benefit. The persistence of improved cognition one month after all dosing had been completed suggests that bryostatin has potential to treat the underlying cause of the disease as well as the progression of the disease.”  

LIFESTYLE

According to a March 29, 2018 Forbes article by elder law attorney Carolyn Rosenblatt, “Fear of getting Alzheimer's disease, or dementia  has overtaken fear of developing cancer among our aging population. There are numerous treatments for cancer, some offering true hope of mitigating the diseases. The same is not true for Alzheimer’s.” Specific lifestyle habits can likely protect against AD including exercise and avoiding processed foods. 

DEMENTIA AND THE ARTS

A March 30, 2018 Hamilton News article spotlighted Simply Ballroom dance studio owner Bryan Malcolm, who is hosting a fundraiser to cover production costs of a short film, “Remembering Me,” examining the link between ballroom dancing and Alzheimer’s disease. He references a study by the Albert Einstein College of Medicine finding that frequent dancing offers protection against dementia. According to Malcolm, “I'm hoping to make a quality film that can give more awareness to Alzheimer's and ballroom dancing. I believe music and dancing can affect our lives in so many ways that are different for everyone. It could be physical exercise or stress relief or loneliness. There's a long list.”