Experts Urge Family Members and Friends to Seek Immediate Intervention for Their Loved Ones Who May Have Alzheimer's Di...( New Online Resource YouCanBeTheOne.co...),Health

New Online Resource, YouCanBeTheOne.com, Recommended to Help Guide Important Conversations and Get Families Closer to an Accurate Diagnosis

NEW YORK, May 12 /PRNewswire/ -- The multi-disciplinary expert consortium known as the Alzheimer's Disease Screening Discussion Group (ADSDG) is calling upon family and friends to proactively start a dialogue with loved ones, the potential patient and a physician at the first sign of possible Alzheimer's disease (AD) symptoms. The goal of the call-to-action is to help patients secure a diagnosis in the early stages of the disease and begin proper treatment to slow symptom progression. Addressing AD early can help keep the family connected longer and provide time to plan for the future, both financially and emotionally. This initiative was developed on the heels of the ADSDG's 2008 national U.S. survey reporting that too many family members and friends do not take action even when signs of AD are suspected. The ADSDG is sponsored by Eisai Inc. and Pfizer Inc.

Currently only 60 percent of AD patients are diagnosed, and of those, only half receive treatment to slow the progression of symptoms. The ADSDG has identified the top five barriers that delay family and friends from addressing AD symptoms until the disease is in its later stages:

• Fear of scaring or offending the patient
• Inaccurate notion that effective medical treatments do not exist
• Unwillingness or inability to assume caregiver role and responsibilities
• Disagreement among family members and/or friends about confronting the patient
• Cultural differences and language barriers that may delay minority groups from seeking prompt diagnosis and treatment

Given these barriers and the escalating number of people with AD - an additional half million people may be diagnosed in the next year,
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