Must reads

• A December 1, 2014 Reuters article (via Yahoo! News) reported that "AstraZeneca and Eli Lilly said on Monday they had started a large trial of their experimental Alzheimer's drug, seen as a promising, but still risky, approach for slowing the memory-robbing disease." According the article, "The pivotal Phase II/III clinical trial will involve more than 1,500 patients with early Alzheimer's, the first one of which has now been enrolled. The study is expected to complete in May 2019, according to the clinicaltrials.gov website…The medicine works by blocking an enzyme called beta secretase that is involved in production of beta-amyloid, a protein that creates brain plaques. Such medicines are known as BACE inhibitors."
• A November 30, 2014 UT San Diego article reported on the efforts of the city of San Diego to address Alzheimer's. According to the article, "Led by county supervisors Dianne Jacob and Dave Roberts, a broad and deep coalition of civic leaders, scientists, caregivers, philanthropists and law-enforcement officials worked through the summer to craft a five-year plan that covers everything from raising money for research to forming better guidelines for doctors to diagnose and treat patients…The county government, which oversees local public-health issues, has worked for months to bring together a diverse grouping of stakeholders. They’re divided into four main divisions: cure, care, clinical and public education. Roundtable meetings have been held to discuss these central themes. Each group came forward with recommendations that were compiled to form the new report. The San Diego program’s broad coalition seems unprecedented, at least in the realm of Alzheimer’s disease, said Dr. Donald Schwarz, a director at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation who focuses on “catalyzing demand” for health care improvements. He noted that similar, though not identical, approaches have been taken for other health epidemics such as HIV and cancer."

• A December 1, 2014 BBC News article (UK) reported that a new report by Marie Curie Cancer Care and the Alzheimer's Society highlighted the need to focus on care options and end of care services for Alzheimer's and dementia sufferers. According to the article, "The report said: "To date, much of the focus has been on living well with dementia, with little focus on the experiences of people with dementia nearing the end of their lives. "We must ensure a stronger focus on the inevitable conclusion of what is a progressive, terminal condition. Those with dementia will die (whether directly as a result of dementia or of another co-existing condition) and we must improve the care of people in the later stages of dementia." It said the response to terminal illness and death from these types of illnesses had been shaped in response to cancer. And said core services now needed to transform to respond to the needs of people with other diseases, such as dementia."
• A November 28, 2014 The Guardian article (UK) by British caregiver Alex Andreou called on caregivers to share their stories. According to Andreou, "Tomorrow is the end of National Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness Month and National Caregiver Month. We must talk about it. We must share our stories, without shame. Sharing our stories is therapy for the individual carer and support for others in a similar position. It helps develop a collective understanding and a body of coping strategies. This year alone in the UK an estimated 116,000 people will have to leave or significantly adjust work in order to care for someone with dementia. To be silent, to hide our elderly people away, is to condemn millions to the joyless torpor of merely awaiting death in isolation. There are still gold nuggets to be found in the deepest, thickest sludge. Don’t miss them by looking too far back or too far forward."