THE RESEARCH

THE EPIDEMIC HAS BEGUN

Alzheimer’s Disease and other dementias pose a significant burden for affected individuals, their caretakers, the healthcare system, and society at large.  Alzheimer’s not only robs people of their memories, reasoning, and independence but is fatal.  The progression of the disease is different for everyone, though all involved suffer physically, financially, and emotionally. Many experts predict a global epidemic in the years ahead, and already 50 million people around the world are living with Alzheimer’s.  Every 3 seconds, someone in the world develops Alzheimer’s. 

The number of people with the disease in the U.S. is expected to triple from ~6 million in 2020 to 16 million by 2050.  According to the Alzheimer’s Association, Alzheimer’s and related dementias will cost our nation $305 billion in 2020.  By 2050, these costs could rise as high as $1.1 trillion. Alzheimer’s is the most expensive disease in America—costing more than either cancer or heart disease. 

We can no longer afford to ignore the tsunami that lies ahead without significant advancements in research to understand how to effectively treat and prevent Alzheimer’s Disease.

THE RESEARCH OFFERS HOPE

Currently, Alzheimer’s Disease has no known cure, but recent research results are raising hopes that someday it might be possible to delay, slow down, or even prevent this devastating disease. Increasingly, evidence suggests that a combination of genetic, lifestyle, and environmental factors influence the risk of dementia and its progression. One promising area of focus is a better understanding of mild cognitive impairment and early diagnosis and treatment of memory disorders. Research is moving beyond a single approach to examine how Alzheimer’s and related dementias differ among individuals and across groups. It is also paramount to involve persons who are often underrepresented in research. 

Researchers around the world are coming together to discover interventions to delay, treat, or prevent dementia. In the United States, government funding has increased but remains below the level necessary to advance the research at the optimal pace.  Unrestricted, philanthropic funds not only provide a lifeline to researchers but lead to increased levels of government funding to help us address this national and international crisis.

An NIH article titled "Tackling the growing, global burden of dementia" underscores the critical need to fund creative research endeavors:

“This is a critical time in Alzheimer’s research, with new opportunities to build upon what we have learned,” said Dr. Richard Hodes, director of NIH’s National Institute on Aging (NIA). Equipped with increased federal funding and guided by recommendations resulting from regular stakeholder summits, NIA is leading the U.S. government’s research effort to prevent and effectively treat Alzheimer’s and related dementias by 2025, a goal of the National Plan to Address Alzheimer's Disease, established in 2012. “We must continue to foster creative approaches that leverage emerging scientific and technological advances, establish robust translational infrastructure for rapid and broad sharing of data and research tools, and work with funding partners and other stakeholders to cultivate and sustain an open science research ecosystem.”  

THE PARTNERSHIP

Daughters Against Alzheimer’s is honored to support Emory University's Goizueta Alzheimer's Disease Resarch Center and to work alongside them to identify and fund innovative and promising research around the globe whose work can lead us to a world without Alzheimer’s.