USA2 SPOTLIGHT 

An April 19, 2016 Xconomy.com article reported on the Alzheimer’s drug pipeline and highlighted a recent analysis released by UsA2 Researchers Network. According to the article, “Yet the late stage pipeline of potential new Alzheimer’s drugs is crowded, according to this recent analysis by the advocacy group USAgainstAlzheimers. There is an outside chance a significant treatment could be available by the end of this decade, unlocking pent-up demand from possibly hundreds of thousands of people. Planning has to start now. A lot of resources, from imaging equipment to special clinics to trained staff, will have to be in place.” 

MUST READS

An April 19, 2016 BBC News article reported that “Scientists believe injections of a natural protein may lessen the symptoms and progress of Alzheimer's dementia after promising early trials in mice.” According to the article, “The treatment - IL 33 - appeared to improve memory and help clear and prevent brain deposits similar to those seen in people with Alzheimer's.Tentative human studies of the treatment will soon begin, but experts say it will take many years to know if it could help patients in real life. The work is published in PNAS journal.”

An April 19, 2016 Narratively article by Alzheimer’s caregiver Neil Goldstein offered a glimpse into the “painful reality of marriage after Alzheimer’s.” According to Goldstein, “Barbara would rather I never leave the house or, when I do, take her with me. My overwhelming fear is my soul will be accreted into Barbara’s malfunctioning synapses and I will lose my will to live. Alzheimer’s leaves no prisoners…At this point, I become the caretaker until eleven a.m. the next day. I must hide my excitement from my day in class and can’t share what I’m writing with her. Any act of enjoyment or connectedness on my part to being alive, Barbara takes as separation from her and she resents me for it. In her despair, we can only be equals again if I am diminished too. And I do feel increasingly separate from her with each passing day, as the white lies I tell her become normal. Though the gravitational pull of a lifetime together is a mighty force.”

An April 18, 2016 PBS Newshour article explored the popularity of genetic counseling. According to the article, “She said people became much more willing to talk about their genetic predispositions and seek out testing for conditions like Alzheimer’s disease and cystic fibrosis. The number of patients seeking genetic counseling and testing has increased dramatically, according to a 2014 study that looked at how Jolie’s announcement affected interest in testing. But the number of genetic counselors, the people who help both doctors and patients make sense of these tests, hasn’t expanded enough to keep up with that demand. There are just 4,000 certified genetic counselors in the country today. That’s one for every 80,000 Americans.”

UPCOMING EVENTS 

WILL THE AGING OF AMERICA BE A TRIUMPH OR A TRAGEDY? Ken Dychtwald, Ph.D. is a renowned psychologist, gerontologist, documentary filmmaker, author of 16 books on aging, health and work, and chief executive of Age Wave. You’re invited to join a no-holds-barred press briefing hosted by Dychtwald (via conference call) to raise awareness of the five aging-related transpartisan issues every presidential candidate must address. Thursday, April 21 at 1:00 - 1:45 pm ET/10:00 - 10:45 am PT RSVP here.

INTERESTING READS FROM AROUND THE WEB

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