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An Alzheimer’s Patch Is On The Way

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Sometime soon, there will be a skin patch available for treating the dementia that comes with Alzheimer’s disease. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently approved the patch form of Exelon (generic name: rivastigmine). This is good news for the more than four million Americans who are losing memories and cognitive abilities to the progression of Alzheimer’s disease. Exelon is already available in capsule form, but many patients have complained of gastrointestinal side effects like severe nausea. In patch form, the drug will enter the bloodstream directly and bypass the gastrointestinal system entirely. Exelon inhibits the breakdown of a neurotransmitter … Continue reading →

My Life as a Lab Rat: Finding a Study

I’ve been interested in clinical research trials for a while now. You may remember that my grandmother — who has Alzheimer’s disease — took part in a medical trial for the Excelon patch, a new delivery method for an Alzheimer’s drug. In oral form, the medication often causes severe gastrointestinal side effects; in patch form, the side effects are dramatically decreased. Although that particular medication didn’t benefit my grandmother much, her participation in the trial will help make the medication available for Alzheimer’s patients all over. But I was curious about research trials before that. Back home in New Jersey, … Continue reading →

Too Many Baby Boomers are Facing Alzheimer’s

A new report from the Alzheimer’s Association has some bad news about the future of Alzheimer’s disease. Right now, more than five million Americans are suffering from Alzheimer’s disease — including as many as 250,000 people under the age of sixty-five. By 2010, the Alzheimer’s Association predicts that there will be five hundred thousand new cases reported each year. By 2050, the Alzheimer’s Association predicts that there will be one million new cases of Alzheimer’s disease annually. The bad news focuses especially on baby boomers. The Alzheimer’s Association estimates that ten million baby boomers will develop Alzheimer’s disease in their … Continue reading →

Stages of Alzheimer’s Disease

Alzheimer’s disease is divided into stages in order to help people understand how the disease might unfold in a loved one. However, not everyone experiences the same symptoms at the same rate! On average, a person with Alzheimer’s disease passes away within four to six years of diagnosis. Some people live on for as long as twenty more years after a diagnosis. In general, Alzheimer’s disease is divided into mild, moderate, and severe stages. Experts have developed a more detailed list, even including pre-Alzheimer’s mental states: Stage 1: No impairment. A person experiences no memory problems that are evident to … Continue reading →

Angry and Helpless as My Mom Loses It

As I wrote in a recent article, my mom is beginning to battle Old Timer’s (a.k.a. Dementia or Alzheimer’s) like her mother did, which makes me angry. But I’m not angry at the disease. I’m angry about a lot of other things. Angry at Losing Her Now As I commented on one of Aimee’s articles about this issue I had to stand by and lose my grandma to this disease before she actually passed. Now it’s happening with my mom. I’m angry about that. Angry at My Mom I’m angry at my mom because she refuses to take steps to … Continue reading →

Here We Go Again…Another Woman in My Family Battles Old-Timer’s

Aimee’s Watching a Loved One Lose Time article really struck a chord with me. In addition to leaving a comment on her article, I also PM’d her to tell her how much it hit home and why. She encouraged me to share my story here, so…I took her up on it. My Grandma My grandma started showing signs of Old Timer’s (a.k.a. Dementia or Alzheimer’s) in 1992. Unlike Aimee did with her grandma, I never lived with mine but I did help with her care as best as I could. You see, at that time I was still going to … Continue reading →