Over the holidays, my mother-in-law brought a few magazines with her that she left at the house. One of which was an older issue of U.S. News & World Report from December of 2006. On the cover there is a photo of a relatively young woman who has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. The title of the article is “The New Face of Alzheimer’s,” and it talks about whey more younger people are being diagnosed with this devastating disease.
Before reading it, I expected to hear about people in their lower 50’s being told they have Alzheimer’s. I was shocked to learn that even some people in their 30’s are being given the grim news. The article says “It afflicts people in their 50’s, their 40’s, and even in their 30’s.” More and more young people are showing up at doctor’s offices and support group meetings than ever before.
The article spotlights several people at various (mostly younger) ages, and describes their daily lives, and how they are coping. The article also talks about hopeful new medications and therapies that will attempt to tackle this disease head-on, including Secretase modulators, immunotherapy, and others that are currently being tested for safety and effectiveness.
