September 10, 2013

Today's Top Alzheimer's News

Sandy Weill donates $100 million to medical research, UK experts concerned with over diagnosing Alzheimer's, and the Grateful Dead and Alzheimer's (read more).
 
 

Must reads

  • A September 10, 2013 CNBC article reported that former Citi Bank Chairman Sand Weill announced a $100 million gift to Weill Cornell Medical College. According to the article, "The fundraising effort will provide resources to research diseases such as diabetes, cancer, and Alzheimer's as well as recruitment of the best and brightest research scientists and scholarships for the college's students across the globe."
  • A September 9, 2013 Washington Post article profiled a group of local dementia sufferers and their efforts to stay connected by forming an "Alzheimer's supper club." According to the article, "And these couples wanted to stay together, with those giving the care side by side with those receiving it. So they started a supper club, humorously called the Wild Bunch. Once a month, the couples meet at one of their homes, casseroles and wine bottles in hand, to swap stories, trade jokes and have a good time.Staying connected to other people and combating loneliness in the face of a disease that steals a person’s memory and ability to care for himself is important, doctors and dementia experts say. Research shows that the lack of social contact has adverse consequences on the health and well-being of patients and caregivers alike."
Diagnosis 
  • A September 9, 2013 Guardian article reported that some dementia experts are concerned with over diagnosing Alzheimer's as a result of an increased focus on early diagnosis. According to the article, "Two-thirds of people aged 80 or over could be diagnosed with dementia in future because doctors are subjecting patients to needless investigation for and potentially damaging treatment of the disease, experts say…They criticise government moves to increase the early diagnosis of dementia by identifying more people as soon as possible with mild cognitive impairment, or pre-dementia, which can be a precursor of the condition, such as through cash incentives to GP surgeries and establishing a network of memory clinics.They claim the "political drive" in the UK and US towards early diagnosis is not backed by evidence of benefit and is part of a pointless "war against dementia" that is producing more commercial opportunities for firms that sell testing tools rather than helping patients at risk of developing the condition."

Alzheimer's and music 

  • A September 9, 2013 Associated Press article reported that former Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart and Adam Gazzaley, a University of California neuroscientist, are working together to explore the relationship between cognitive function and music. According to the article, "The subject has been an interest of the musician's since the late 1980s, as he watched his grandmother deal with Alzheimer's disease. When he played the drums for her, he says she became more responsive. Since then, Hart has invested time and money exploring the therapeutic potential of rhythm. Thirteen years ago, he founded Rhythm for Life, a nonprofit promoting drum circles for the elderly."