Families share experiences with Alzheimer’s disease

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) - Jan. 14, 2021, is a day that changed my life forever. It’s the day I reported live for the first time on TV. I’ll remember that day for what happened just moments after the camera went off: I received a message that my grandmother had died.

A grandmother’s diagnosis

Barbara Early was born in 1938 in the suburbs of Philadelphia. She was a wife, mother, grandmother, homemaker, secretary and life of the party.

At age 75, she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. It changed our family dynamic, and we saw the toll the disease took on her throughout the years.

What started as forgetting simple things turned into needing help with everyday tasks like getting dressed and brushing her hair. We saw the illness change the woman we had surrounded ourselves with for decades.

Our family’s story is not unique.

The Vasser family in Ellisville

Ellisville resident Vickie Vasser said her mother, Judy, has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.

“We first began to notice subtle changes about 10 years ago,” Vasser said.

Vasser said her role and her father’s role have shifted since the diagnosis, but they have developed an even closer relationship.

“Fortunately, our family is very close, and I think it requires you to pause and reflect on the time you have with your family members,” Vasser said.

Alzheimer’s by the numbers

In Illinois, 250,000 people are living with Alzheimer’s. The disease affects more than 122,000 Missourians.

By 2060, more than 13.8 million Americans are predicted to have Alzheimer’s disease.

“Alzheimer’s disease is a type of dementia. It is the most common form of dementia … over 7 million people in the United States,” Kelly Quinn said.

According to the Alzheimer’s Association, nearly 13 million Americans provide unpaid care for a family member or friend with dementia. Over half of caregivers are helping a parent with dementia.

This year, the cost of care for Americans 65 or older with Alzheimer’s or dementia is estimated to top $409 billion.

Treatments and testing

Since 2020, there have been five FDA-approved treatments. Two of those treatments work to slow disease progression.

Doctors can now run blood tests. That is how Judy Vasser was diagnosed three years ago.

“Anyone who’s really starting to think about or experience those thinking or memory changes, we definitely encourage them to talk to their primary care physician,” Sarah Lovegreen said.

Lovegreen said a federal bill, the Alzheimer’s Screening and Prevention Act, or ASAP Act, is being worked on at the federal level.

“This would allow the Secretary of Health to approve those blood tests through Medicare if that were to pass,” Lovegreen said.

Risk factors

Risk factors for Alzheimer’s include age, genes and family history. Doctors say risks that can be controlled include diet, exercise, sleep, social engagement and sensory loss.

“I think it inspires me to always want to continue to move, as I see people in their 70s and 80s. I want to continue to move,” Vasser said.

“What presence looks like may be different. Of course, memories that we know with someone that has Alzheimer’s, they may forget everything, but the love that you have for someone doesn’t,” Vasser said.

Walks to raise funds and awareness

The Alzheimer’s Association holds yearly walks in over 600 communities nationwide. The walks help pay for resources including educational programs, support groups and a 24/7 helpline, (800)272-3900, which offers free support to people with dementia, caregivers and the public.

“Walking Saturday, along with thousands of people in our community who have also been impacted, just gives me hope,” Vasser said.

While my grandmother was battling the disease, and since she died, I’ve continued to keep her memory alive through my work with the Alzheimer’s Association. That work included time in college through the Sigma Kappa sorority and the past five years in mid-Missouri.

I walk in honor of my grandmother every year.