what if, adni 2 follow up

WHAT IF
the theory is that alzheimers disease is caused by the accumulation
of a sticky gooey substance called beta amyloid that attaches itself
to the brain and as a result the brain nerve cells die and what the end
result is
alzhiemers disease
thats the theory that is about to be finally tested in a clinical trial in
columbia
why columbia and not the us

in columbia there is an extended family of over 300 people who
get full blown alzhiemers disease in their mid 40s
they have a genetic mutation that predisposes them to get the
disease

there are people here in the us that have the same mutation but they
are not in the same family and in the same area of the country
like the family is in columbia

the new drug being tested is called crenezumab
its an injectible drug that induces the body or it is an anitbody that
attaches itself to this goey sticky beta amyloid and starts to remove
it from the brain

instead of giving it to people who have full blown alzhiemers
the drug will be given to people who dont have any symptoms yet
but who most certainly will get the disease within 10 years

if the beta amyloid gets removed as its produced and these people
who are destined to get alzheimers dont get alzheimers then the
theory that the beta amyloid is the cause of alzheimers disease
is proven and we then will have the first real medicine that can be
used to prevent alzheimers disease from occurring

thats the treatment america and the world is waiting for
i know if it was available and it works i would be first in line
to volunteer to get it
similar drugs as ive mentioned before though do not work as
well in patients like me who carry the apoe 4 gentotype
so if it works it may not work as well in me and others who
carry this genotype

could we have a cure or preventative treatment coming soon
the goal is a cure by 2025
i of course dont have that much time to wait

ADNI 2 FOLLOW UP
yesterday i went for my one year follow up for the adni 2 study
alzheimers disease neuroimaging  intiative phase 2
i had tons of blood drawn in special tubes that are sent off to
the adni central location i think in uc san diego

i had a neuropsychological exam done again
yes the torture test
this was a little shorter yesterday as it was only an hour long
next year i have the lengthy one done of 2-21/2 hours
dont look forward to that one

i had another neurological exam done by a neurologist and
a lot of questions were asked about how i was doing

my wife she also has to go with me
they ask her lots of questions about me and she
has to fill out a lengthy questionnaire on how im doing
she was real good this time and didnt get faintified

then finally i had a special volumetric mri of the brain done without
contrast that also takes extra views of the area of the brain
where alzheimers usually starts
this volume of this area will be measured and any subtle
changes in its size will be detected on this mri
this mri although read locally will be sent to the research central
area i think again at uc san diego to be officially read for the study

as a part of the deal i dont get the results of these studies

however when i take the neuropsych exam i know personally how
i am doing
i still have short term memory problems that are noticeable when
i take the test and have been persistent
they do correlate with things i notice but others dont notice
in my everyday life
none of this interferes with what i am doing now but
would have interfered with my practice of medicine

this does seem stable however and has not really worsened in a
year and a half since i had my first neuropsych exam done

my wife she and i did a video for the alzheimers research center
they did over 4-5 hours of filming and made a 5 minute video

ive reviewed it and although its hard to watch for me i know
that its a good video that hopefully will encourage people to get
evaluated  if they are having symptoms or to volunteer for an alzheimers
research study

i should be able to post it on my blog and it also will be available
on the azheimers research centers website and possibly other
national websites soon

i will post where it can be viewed when its available

the organicgreen doctor