United States: Today, the number of deaths caused by Alzheimer’s Disease has reached a high point, and hence, scientists give their opinion on the temporal phenomenon of the delayed diagnosis and the missed therapy, which is the most effective at the very moment of the disease outbreak.
The death toll growth caused by the disease amounted to 141 percent, even over a period of 2000-2021, since the Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures Report 2024 revealed that.
Rising cases of Alzheimer’s Disease in the US
Additionally, the number of US residents affected by this disease has grown too, amounting to 6.9 million and keeps soaring as of today.
Dr. James Galvin, chief of cognitive neurology and director of the Comprehensive Center for Brain Health at The University of Miami Health System, said, “As older adults — mostly baby boomers born between 1946 and 1964 — are the fastest-growing segment of the population, and this same demographic is at the highest risk for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, it is not entirely surprising that the number of cases continues to grow,” as Fox News reported.
Further, another factor causing a rise in cases of the disease is getting themselves detected earlier, as Galvin stated, “due to scientific advances in knowledge, diagnostic criteria and laboratory tests that enable health care professionals to make diagnoses with greater surety and accuracy.”
What are early detection benefits?
Galvin said that early detection allows the family to plan future courses of care to be given to the patient in a timely manner.
Galvin said, “There are newer medications that have the potential for disease modification that are approved or under consideration for approval, so patients have more treatment options,” as Fox News reported.
He added, “Specifically, these are monoclonal antibodies against the amyloid beta-protein, the building block of the senile plaques in the Alzheimer’s brain,” and, “This is particularly exciting because rather than being reactive after the disease starts, these new programs are proactive and could potentially have a much greater impact on public health.”
Alzheimer’s going slowed or reversed cases
Dr. Heather Sandison, who is a prominent expert in Alzheimer’s and related dementia care, based in California, said that in some of the cases, the disease could also be reversing or slowing down.
Sandison said, “The ways for individuals to potentially reverse Alzheimer’s vary because the causes of Alzheimer’s vary from person to person,” and, “Instead of thinking of one way or one of two ways, I propose an entirely new paradigm of thinking about the causes of Alzheimer’s disease — identifying them for the individual and creating a targeted, precise approach to treatment.”
She even said, “The choices you make each day about what you put in your mouth, how much you move, and what time you get to bed have the biggest impact on your long-term brain health.”