Alzheimer’s Research UK – Help us to stop others forgetting you

Thank you very much for taking the time to find my Blog and for showing an interest in my chosen advocacy topic. Alzheimer’s disease affects the brain. If someone develops Alzheimer’s, their brain will shrink in size, it will be harder for them to remember things and harder for them to carry out simple tasks. As dementia progresses, it weakens the brain and can become very severe, resulting in complete loss of memory. Dementia costs the UK economy £23 billion each year - this is twice as much as cancer and 3 times as much as heart disease. Just 2.5% of the Government’s medical research budget is spent on dementia, while 25% is spent on cancer research.

This is where Alzheimer’s Research UK comes in. Alzheimer’s Research UK is the UK’s leading dementia research charity specialising in finding preventions, treatments and a cure for dementia. The money that they raise is used to fund world-class research at leading universities in an attempt to find a cure for dementia. Their aim is simple – to create a world without dementia. However, this isn’t easy. With little money from the government, they have to rely on public donations.

Not only is Alzheimer’s disease a cost to the UK economy, it is also a huge cost to the lives of those it affects – this is not just those who have Dementia, but also their close friends, family and especially their carer(s). To look after someone you love and have to watch them suffer and deteriorate in front of your eyes is incredibly hard, especially as they could get to the point of not only not knowing who you are, but also who they are. They could look in a mirror and not know who they’re looking at.

Sally’s story shows the pain and worry caused by Alzheimer’s:

“Since mum was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, she’s gone downhill quite quickly. What upsets me more than anything is that sometimes, when she’s around my daughter Emma, it’s like she doesn’t know who she is. The frightening truth is that more and more people are being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s every day. I’m terrified that if I become one of them, I won’t remember Emma either. And I know that I’m just one of the thousands of parents who feel that way. That’s why the research carried out by Alzheimer’s Research UK is so important.”

Having read my blog please would you answer the questions below and post me a response with your thoughts. If you do post a response, please can you tell where you come from i.e. hometown and country.

• Do you feel more informed about Alzheimer’s disease?
• Would you now be willing to support Alzheimer’s Research UK in any of the following ways …
1.) Make a donation to Alzheimer’s Research UK?
2.) Start or join a fundraising campaign?
3.) Sign up to receive regular information about Alzheimer’s Research and the work they are doing?
4.) Inform your friends and family about Alzheimer’s Research UK so that they too may help in any of the above ways?
•Would you now be willing to campaign or fundraise for Alzheimer’s Research UK?
• Would you now be willing to inform your family and friends about Alzheimer’s Research UK?

If you are interested and would like to know more, please visit the Alzheimer’s Research UK website:
http://www.alzheimersresearchuk.org/Thank you again for taking the time for reading my blog, I am very grateful that you have shown an interest.
I will leave you with a quote from Alzheimer’s Research UK
“Families all over the UK are counting on our research. Together, we can make sure we don’t let them down.”

Thank you.
Alice