Editorial: Alzheimer's hope - Ocala

<p>When the Group of 8 economic forum set an international goal this month to conquer Alzheimer's disease by 2025, it may have sounded too ambitious. The dementia-type illness, after all, is so prevalent that nearly half of the 85-and-older population have it — presenting a huge personal, familial and global challenge.</p><p>Still, the very act of setting this goal energizes the quest for better diagnostic tools and even a cure.</p><p>As humanity has learned from the fights against cancer and AIDS, we can tame health scourges if we put all our minds — and considerable money — to the effort. HIV and cancer were once inexorable killers. They remain formidable diagnoses today, yet millions of people survive them thanks to hard-won, near-miraculous medical advancements.</p><p>The world must demand the same high-priority effort against Alzheimer's, whose shadow looms larger and larger as the population ages.</p><p>In retiree-laden communities like Marion County, Alzheimer's is a visible intruder in thousands of households, diminishing the gift of longer lifespans. In a progression that can last a decade or more, dementia's memory-demolishing effects gradually incapacitate patients and steal quality of life from their families, too. From caregiving to assisted-living and nursing-home facilities, the community struggles to meet the need for Alzheimer's-related services.</p><p>Medically, emotionally and socially, it is a difficult, costly and long-term problem. As the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services notes, "Individuals with Alzheimer's disease use a disproportionate amount of health care resources; for instance, they are hospitalized 2-3 times as often as people the same age who do not have the disease."</p><p>Research is underway around the world, but breakthroughs are elusive. Despite Alzheimer's prevalence, scientists aren't sure how it begins or how to stop it.</p><p>Many believe that the resulting cognitive decline is due to nerve damage from protein plaque and tangles in the brain, but no easy, definitive tests exist to diagnose it. There is a risk association between head injuries and later dementia, but researchers aren't sure why. Several drugs developed for Alzheimer's have troubling side effects and offer benefits that are largely temporary.</p><p>Clearly, Alzheimer's is a subject that cries out for top-priority research and the funding to conduct it. The United States has had some success in that regard. Under legislation signed in 2011, a national plan to address Alzheimer's and dementia was initiated. It includes the 2025 goal, as well as increased research funding and other strategies, but it's a work in progress. (Read about it at http://aspe.hhs.gov/daltcp/napa/natlplan.shtml.)</p><p>Increasingly, other nations are recognizing that Alzheimer's is their problem, too. December's summit meeting of the G8 (France, United States, United Kingdom, Russia, Germany, Japan, Italy and Canada), focused an even stronger spotlight on the issue. Also helping was Britain's recent pledge to double dementia-research funding by 2025.</p><p>Ambitious though it is, the 2025 Alzheimer's goal is a vital one. This is an illness that attacks the front of the human spirit — the brain. Fittingly, that same asset is our best tool to find the best ways to fight back.</p>