The battle against Alzheimer’s

September is World Alzheimer's Month, during which the focus is on raising public awareness about Alzheimer's and other dementias.

This year's theme is dedicated to discussing strategies to reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer's, especially since recent research indicates that 40 per cent of the risk can be reduced by risk factors such as smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, physical inactivity, infrequent social contact, head injuries, and conditions including diabetes, hearing loss, depression, obesity, and hypertension.

I have been working with people who have Alzheimer's for over 15 years and have witnessed individuals gradually fading away as the disease takes its toll. The emotions experienced by patients and their family members are profound and touching, starting from denial to anger and frustration. I can personally relate to this when my late father developed Alzheimer's, and initially, we tried to attribute his symptoms to old age or depression following the death of his brother. It was only when things got out of control that we realised there was a serious problem.

This was in the late nineties when there were no specialised Alzheimer's clinics in Oman. Yet even in this day and age, we still come across families that delay seeking help for various reasons such as denial or believing that not much can be done. Such attitudes are not limited to patients and their families but can also be held by healthcare professionals who encounter patients with memory problems but don't recommend a specialist assessment.

Even after diagnosis, and with no effective medication to cure Alzheimer's, patients and their families become increasingly frustrated. That's why many people were excited to hear about the new medications for Alzheimer's that were approved last year. These drugs are shown to remove amyloid, the protein thought to cause Alzheimer's disease, and slow down the decline in symptoms. However, recent studies suggest that the actual benefits of such medications may not be as significant when considering their cost and the potential side effects experienced by patients who take them, such as brain bleeding, which is estimated to occur in one out of every eight patients who start on such drugs.

Although the drug manufacturers advise regular brain scans, such scans may not be accessible at all hospitals or may have a long waiting list. From a financial perspective, the average cost of such medications ranges from $20,000 to $26,500 (RO7,700-9,600), which does not include monitoring and management of side effects. Another crucial point is that such medications only work for the early stages of Alzheimer's disease, making early and accurate diagnosis essential.

So, what does the new drug discovery mean for the average person? To be realistic and drawing from my experience working in Oman for the past years, we need to focus more on public awareness about Alzheimer's and other dementias. We should invest in training primary care doctors to screen for symptoms using screening tools that are validated for the Arab population.

We also need up-to-date tools to confirm the diagnosis and monitor side effects, along with providing social care and support for patients and their caregivers as the disease progresses. Patients often become bedridden and require more care, which can exceed the skills of their family members.

Therefore, training caregivers is crucial to ensure a good quality of care. Finally, while the battle against Alzheimer's continues, let's remember to care for people with Alzheimer's with dignity and love and do our best to make their lives comfortable.