Alzheimer's Soars, Global Focus Nee...(nes caregivers family and friends pay a ...),Health

Low-income countries, where dementia is considered a normal part of aging, need to promote greater awareness of the disease, Acosta said. Over the next 20 years, some places like North Africa and the Middle East will see dementia cases increase 125 percent, the researchers predicted.

Wealthy countries, including the United States, need plans "to address the issues of the dementia patient," she said.

Because the United States has no national plan for Alzheimer's disease, research and treatment gains have lagged, said Harry Johns, chief executive officer of the Alzheimer's Association. "We do not have a national plan like France does, like the United Kingdom does, like Australia does."

"As a result, the investment in Alzheimer's research is far lower than for other chronic diseases," Johns said. "We have seen investments in cancer make a big difference, in heart disease make a big difference, in HIV/AIDS make a big difference, but the investment in Alzheimer's research is dramatically lower than those other conditions."

Dementia is characterized by a progressive deterioration in intellectual abilities, including memory, learning, orientation, language, comprehension and judgment. Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of dementia, is fatal. The condition mainly affects people older than 65.

"This new report updates the sad fact that economic globalization and development is coupled to a globalizing dementia epidemic now projected to grow to an alarming 115 million victims worldwide," said Greg M. Cole, associate director of the Alzheimer's Disease Research Center at the David Geffen School of Medicine of the University of California Los Angeles.

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