From the Associated Press, USA Today, ABC News and elsewhere:

Retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor took her family’s private battle with Alzheimer’s disease public Wednesday as she urged Congress to speed research and aid to fight the coming epidemic of the mind-destroying illness.

“Our nation certainly is ready to get deadly serious about this deadly disease,” she told the Senate Special Committee on Aging.

She has a personal stake. “My beloved husband John suffers Alzheimer’s,” she said. “He is not in very good shape at present.”

… More than 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease. The number is poised to skyrocket, with 16 million people forecast to have it by 2050 thanks to a graying population. It already afflicts one in eight people 65 and older, and nearly one in two people over 85.

… Already, 10 million people are estimated to be sharing the overwhelming task of caring for a relative or friend with dementia, juggling jobs and other family responsibilities with little formal training, support or financial help available. The Alzheimer’s Association says the unpaid care they provide is valued at $89 billion.

O’Connor stepped down from the high court in 2005, saying she needed to care for her husband

Interview with O’Connor is here.

See earlier posts here and here.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 14th, 2008 at 12:43 pm and is filed under NOT2BEMISSED, alzheimer's, celebrities, research funding, research news. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.  Email This Post