Dementia research: 2024 in review

Did dealing with your loved one’s dementia every day leave you feeling wiped out by the end of 2024? Me too. So as we step forward into 2025, let’s take a moment to find some hope and look at some news that reminds us just how big our community is and how many people are standing with us to fight this horrible disease.

AOL recently published a news piece about the most important discoveries in dementia research in 2024. I encourage you to read all of the details in the article itself, but if you don’t have time then here’s a quick summary:

1. The drug Kisunla was approved by the FDA. This is a major step forward in the treatment of dementia. It aims to slow progression and change the course of the disease. This is the third new FDA approval since 2021.

2. Blood tests for Alzheimer’s disease have become significantly more accurate and are closer than ever to being used in physician’s offices. More people than ever will be able to have access to these important tests.

3. Thanks to important studies on the stressors that come with dementia, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid are launching an 8-year pilot program to provide supportive services to people with dementia and their caregivers.

4. Air pollution has been linked to dementia, especially smoke from wildfires. This opens up new avenues of research and preventative measures that must be studied further.

5. Alzheimer’s disease has been proven to begin with brain changes before outward signs appear. This finally defines the disease as a biological process.

Read the full details of these discoveries in the article linked below.

Telling tales: caregivers speak their personal truths

Stories shape our worlds and draw us into community with each other. The articles below have inspired me to look at my care, and my relationship to caring, from a fresh perspective.

• Alzheimer’s Can Be a World of Endless Second Chances (New York Times): Rebecca Barry finds a bright spot by finding ways to reinvent her relationship with her father through working with his dementia rather than fighting against it.

• For Some, a Silver Lining in Alzheimer’s Caregiving (New York Times Opinion): Did you have a strong reaction to Rebecca Barry’s article directly above about “Second Chances”? So did a lot of other people! Follow this link to read several thoughtful letters to the editor responding to her writing. I highly recommend reading both of these pieces together.

• Moments You Won’t Have Again with an Aging Parent (BuzzFeed): This is a profoundly moving collection of stories submitted by BuzzFeed readers. Their prompt was: “If you've watched a loved one deteriorate from a degenerative condition, are there life moments you've realized you'll never have again with them?” BuzzFeed published 14 of these stories. Be aware, many of them are sad, but they do help us understand that others share our stories and our pain. (Content warning: disease, death, and suicide)

• Fighting to Avoid Her Mother’s Fate, for Her Daughters’ Sake (New York Times) Linde Jacobs watched her mother, Allison, degenerate due to the progression of frontotemporal dementia, transforming her into a person who was increasingly dishonest and cruel as the disease progressed. Then Linde found out that she had the same gene that caused the disease in her mother. And so did her sister. And so might her daughters. She is now fighting for all of their futures by working with doctors and researchers to stop this disease, and time is against her.

Surviving the caregiver calling

This section is all about you, caregiver. Something should be all about you for a change, right?! Below are a few articles that will offer some support and remind you that there are people out there who’ve never met you but still appreciate the compassion you put out in the world every day. I’m one of them! Thank you for what you do.

• Top Online Caregiver Support Groups That Provide Encouragement and Empathy (Woman’s World): this article provides an excellent range of support groups. Some of them are even on Facebook so if you have an account you can sign up easily. I’ve joined a few myself and they have been kind and helpful places with people who understand.

  • Shameless plug! The Dementia Newsletter also has a Facebook group where you can ask questions and share with members: Dementia News Facebook Group

• How to Manage Agitation in Alzheimer’s Disease (Health Central): if you’re a caregiver, the information here will probably be more of a review than brand new to you. However, it’s a nice reminder of the principles of redirection and ways of working with agitation. If you want a refresher, it’s concise and helpful. (Note that it’s set up like a slideshow, so click the left and right arrows to move through it.)

• How One Woman Found Hope, Humor and Healing as a Sandwich Generation Caregiver (First for Women): are you a part of the Sandwich Generation, those who are “sandwiched” between caring for their parents and raising their own children? Family caregiver and parent Shon Lowe is interviewed here about how she copes with the stress, takes care of herself, and ultimately finds joy in the experience of caring for her loved ones. Does it resonate for you?

• Caregiver Burnout (Cleveland Clinic): a detailed article about caregiver burnout from a more clinical perspective. Written in layman’s terms, it’s an accessible piece that defines burnout and gives the symptoms, discusses what it feels like, looks at nuanced causes, and suggests some realistic strategies for prevention and recovery.

Highlighted article: Dementia Caregiving Behind Bars

Peer Caregiving In Prisons: A Humane Response To A Growing Health Care Crisis (Forbes): I’ll admit it: I hadn’t thought of this before. How do we care for those who age and develop dementia in the penitentiary system? As it turns out, not particularly well. But new groups are working to change that. It’s a fascinating read!

Survival for the Sandwich Generation

There’s an article above about the Sandwich Generation, and if you’d like more information about what that is and the challenges they (or you) face, we’ve produced a video on the subject. Click the link below to check it out!

Thanks for tuning in to The Dementia Newsletter this week. Happy New Year, newsletter family! Let’s make 2025 a great one!