New Research Findings Support Alzheimer’s Association Call For Congress To Increase Federal Investment In Alzheimer Research To At Least $1 Billion Annually

PHILADELPHIA, July 19 /PRNewswire/ -- New research presented at the 9th International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders (ICAD) demonstrates the progress being made in prevention, early detection and treatment of Alzheimer's disease and offers renewed hope for a world without the disease. The Alzheimer's Association today is renewing its request for an increase in federal funding for Alzheimer's research to at least $1 billion annually.

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"Increasing federal support for Alzheimer research to at least $1 billion a year would help meet our goal of delaying the disabling symptoms and eventually preventing Alzheimer's disease," said Sheldon Goldberg, president and CEO of the Alzheimer's Association. "The research presented this week at our conference supports this call to action. But we could lose this great opportunity, and the pace of progress could be slowed if we don't make the necessary investment in research."

The ICAD is organized by the Alzheimer's Association and is attended by more than 4,500 of the world's leading researchers to share groundbreaking research on prevention, treatment, causes and risk factors. Key research findings include:

  * The Heart & Head Connection:  The latest research suggests that
    cholesterol levels, diabetes and hypertension -- the traditional risk
    factors for strokes and heart attacks -- may contribute to cognitive
    decline and dementia later in life.  Lifestyle and health habits that
    help the heart, including exercising, eating properly, and controlling
    blood sugar levels, weight, cholesterol and blood pressure, may also
    keep the brain healthy as we age.

  * Observing Alzheimer's in the Living Brain:  Recent advances in brain
    imaging technologies such as PET and MRI may allow for very early
    diagnosis of Alzheimer's and other dementias, and improve assessment of
    treatment effectiveness.

  * Next Generation of Treatments:  Current Alzheimer treatments temporarily
    improve the symptoms of Alzheimer's.  Researchers reported favorable
    results in two safety trials of new types of drugs that may be able to
    intervene in the disease process to prevent the formation of the toxic
    protein fragment beta-amyloid, the sticky substance that many believe
    kills brain cells in people with Alzheimer's disease.

"More dedicated federal funding is needed to take these advancements to the next level so that the medical and scientific communities can diagnose the disease earlier, intervene at an earlier stage, and develop treatments that will slow or stop the progression of Alzheimer's," Goldberg continued.

An Alzheimer's Association report released last month, Saving Lives, Saving Money: Dividends for Americans from Investing in Alzheimer Research, showed that funding breakthroughs in medical research could result in nearly 3 million fewer Americans with the disease and $149 billion in annual Medicare and Medicaid savings by 2025. For every dollar spent now on research, the federal government would have a significant return on investment in future Medicaid and Medicare costs -- 12 to 1 by 2015, 30 to 1 by 2025, and more than 100 to 1 by 2050.

Senators Kit Bond (D-MO) and Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), members of the Senate Appropriations Committee, have introduced legislation to authorize $1.4 billion for research funding for Alzheimer's disease for each of the next five years. The National Institute on Aging (NIA) currently spends $680 million annually on Alzheimer research but can fund only 15 percent of the grant applications for Alzheimer research.

"We are truly on the brink of something that can make a huge difference for American families," said Senator Mikulski (D-MD). "We recognize the emotional and financial costs of Alzheimer's and we know what we would get for an additional investment in research -- early detection and new treatments that extend a patient's memory or ability to go about day-to-day tasks. I am fighting in the U.S. Senate to make Alzheimer's disease a priority in the federal checkbook."

"With a five-year investment in research we could achieve major breakthroughs that would reduce tremendous human suffering and the resulting savings to our overburdened health care system would be astronomical," said Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA), who has introduced a similar House bill. "Now is the time to move forward with additional research funding, not to put the brakes on the tremendous progress we have made."

Senator Bond added, "With the nation's 77 million baby boomers approaching old age, the number of Americans living with Alzheimer's and the costs associated with it are projected to soar. Adequate funding for research must begin now. There's not a moment to lose."

Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA), chairman of the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said, "The scientific findings presented at this conference in Philadelphia demonstrate that a world without Alzheimer's disease is within our reach. Now is the time to increase Alzheimer research funding."

The Alzheimer's Association is the world leader in Alzheimer research and support. Having awarded more than $165 million to nearly 1,400 projects, the Alzheimer's Association is the largest private funder of Alzheimer research. To sustain the rapid progress, the Association calls for $1 billion in annual federal funding for Alzheimer research. For more information about Alzheimer's disease, visit http://www.alz.org/ or call 800-272-3900.

CONTACT: Jackie Nedell, +1-202-973-5826, for the Alzheimer'sAssociation

Web site: http://www.alz.org/