Hope on the Horizon for Alzheimer’s Treatment Advances

Jamie Hairston
4 min readJul 6, 2024

A few years ago, during the pandemic, it became apparent that my grandmother’s memory was deteriorating rapidly. My entire life, she never called me by the correct name on the first try, so I missed early signs of her developing dementia. It wasn’t until I began caring for her that I realized the severity of her condition, necessitating full-time inpatient nursing care.

It’s incredibly inspiring to see people take on the challenge of caring for someone with dementia or Alzheimer’s full-time. They not only watch a loved one lose pieces of themselves every day but often juggle these responsibilities with full-time jobs.

When I came across the recent FDA approval of Eli Lilly’s Kisunla for early-stage Alzheimer’s, I felt a renewed sense of hope. Watching my grandmother’s battle with dementia has been heart-wrenching. She now resides in a nursing home, and each visit painfully reminds me of how this illness robs her of cherished memories and connections.

By nature, unfortunately, Alzheimer’s is degenerative. It is not likely to improve, but seeing progress in improving the length of life for people who may develop this warms my heart.

Understanding Alzheimer’s Disease

Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive neurological disorder that leads to memory loss, cognitive decline, and, eventually, the inability to perform daily activities. It is the most common cause of dementia among older adults. The…

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Jamie Hairston

Jamie is a former addiction counselor who now writes fiction about substance abuse and mental health issues.