it is always interesting for me to go back and read my old blogs
the one below from 2015 was written about a year before i was accepted into the biogen aduhelm clinical trial where i eventually received 18 monthly placebo infusions and 34 monthly aduhelm infusions that removed all the measurable amyloid plaques from my brain
What a difference 8 years can make
in 2015 i wrote the future was brighter than it was 5 years ago
in 2024 its even brighter
_________
09-04-2015
ALZHEIMERS NEWS-A BRIGHTER FUTURE
i think thats true
the future is brighter than it was 5 years ago
progress has been made
as i am preparing for two large presentations on alzheimers disease
i stopped
and
contemplated how much things have changed in the
last 5 years
and
how much potential there is for the future
for
those with memory loss due to alzheimers disease
when i was diagnosed with amnestic mild cognitive impairment
that may be due to alzheimers disease five years ago
it was sort of overwhelming
i could only think of what it was like as my mother and
younger brother were at my stage
they probably werent as aware like i am of the problem
and
what the future held for them
an awful one
all i could think was what course they had
and
how bad it was for the family and friends and
for themselves
i worried a lot about my future
my wife she and i our future
what it would be like
now as i look back and can look forward
i feel more hope
and
thats important
hope
personally i feel better both physically and mentally
my cholesterol and blood pressure are under good control
my weight and physical conditioning is under good control
my diet is the best its ever been
i take a boatload of supplements that have been implied
to help slow things down but not definitely proven to help
yet
i stay very active socially mentally and physically
i drink red wine each night and 2-3 cups of coffee each morning
both may help
i dont sleep well at night 5-6 hours of sleep is all i get
but
luckily since im retired i am able to do an afternoon nap
which helps immensely
maybe we all should be doing this
im happy and contented
i still take aricept (donepezil) and plan to continue it long term
and
i am afraid to stop it as i might deteriorate some with my memory
if do
then
looking forward
for myself and others
memory issue folks can now get a very thorough evaluation
done
so that they will know why they have memory loss
and
if its alzheimers disease
by
a good history and physical
labs for anemia chemistry abnormalities like electrolytes kidney
and liver functions and glucose vitamin b12 vitamin d folate
homocysteine levels which are associated with an increased
risk of alzheimers stroke and heart attacks
thyroid levels
these lab abnormalities are all treatable
bloomberg.com
memory tests easily done in the office and online
mri scans
genetic tests for dominant alzheimers and for apoe 4 gene
spinal fluid analysis for the bad beta amyloid and tau protein
amyvid pet scan of the brain for the presence of beta amyloid
if yours is positive there is a good chance you will get or now have
alzheimers disease
coming soon within maybe 2 years a blood test that may be
90-100% accurate in telling you if you got it or not
so soon
like now you can find out if you have it if you have symptoms
but
some of the tests arent covered by insurance
then once diagnosed
if not sooner
get your self motivated to do those things to stay healthy
get on medicine like aricept as it may slow down symptoms
but at times the side effects suck big time
then
look into the future
as
real soon
there may be a pill called a bace inhibitor that you take
and or
a vaccine given as a regular infusion
both if they are proven to help
will prevent or slow down the disease
you will be able to take them long term
so
i see hope in the future for myself my siblings
and
those of you affected now or soon to be
__________
the evaluation for memory issues hasnt changed much in the last eight years
history and exam
labs
memory testing
mri of the brain
now amyloid pet scans are more readily used instead of spinal taps to help diagnose alzheimers disease
soon the blood tests i mentioned 8 years ago will be available in your doctors offices
they are being used in clinical trials now to screen patients for the studies
they the good ones are as accurate as the spinal taps and amyloid pet scan
commonly if your blood test is positive they will do an amyloid pet scan to verify the finding
the bace inhibitors i mentioned didnt work
in fact it made things worse
now the moncolonal antibodies are approved to remove the amyloid plaque
my drug aduhelm was approved and later taken off the market since it didnt work as well as the other two that were approved
for me the aduhelm worked by removing all the amyloid plaque seen on my amyloid pet scans
the two now available are leqembi and kisunia
they both work faster and remove the amyloid plaque
they provide about 30% slowing in memory loss
studies are being done to treat patient with no symptoms but who have amyloid plaque
so called prealzheimers or prodromal alzheimers
this recommendation to treat these prealzheimers patients will be coming soon
for me i would have received these drugs in my mid 50s if they had been available
other drugs are being studied now to treat amyloid plague and tau tangles and inflammation
eventually its thought folks will be given at least 3 drugs to treat alzheimers
an anti amyloid drug like leqembi or kisunia
an anti tau drug in studies now
an anti inflammatory drug in studies now
maybe these will do the job in really slowing down the disease
adding of course
healthy living
eating a mind diet or similar one
staying active mentally physically and socially
avoiding excessive alcohol
not smoking
getting adequate sleep
treating any mental health issues like anxiety and depression
meditating someway
maintaining a normal weight blood pressure cholesterol and blood sugar
I still take the aricept or donepezil
i no longer take all those supplements
i do all those healthy things mentioned above
sleep is still an issue but i program in an early afternoon nap
some things didnt change over the last 8 years
but some new things are added or will be added in the future
yes the future is now
the organicgrreen doctor
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