When we think about Alzheimer’s, we usually think about older adults.  That’s because approximately 95% of the Alzheimer’s cases we hear about have developed later in life – after age 60.    The causes of Late-Onset Alzheimer’s Disease are still not fully understood, though researchers suspect that a combination of genetic, environmental and lifestyle factors  contribute to our likelihood of developing the disease.

For a small percentage of Alzheimer’s patients, however, there is very little question about the cause of their disease.  Familial Alzheimer’s Disease (FAD) is a form of Early-Onset Alzheimer’s Disease that is caused by genetic mutations on any of three different chromosomes:  21, 14, and 1.  A child whose parent developed Familial Alzheimer’s Disease has a 50/50 chance of inheriting the mutated gene, and if so, they will very likely develop FAD.  FAD occurs in people between the ages of 30 and 60 years old.

The New York Times recently published a poignant article written by a woman whose grandfather and father both died of the disease.  Her father – driven to a career in neurology by his own father’s onset of Alzheimer’s – taught his young daughter all about the disease he would later succumb to.  With a 50/50 chance of developing FAD herself, she voices her own anxiety and fears.”

“I’m not losing track of my car keys, which is pretty standard in aging minds,” she writes. “ Nor have I ever forgotten to turn off the oven after use, common in menopausal women. I can always find my car in the parking lot, although lots of ‘normal’ folk can’t.  Rather, I suddenly can’t remember the name of someone with whom I’ve worked for years…am I losing track of me?”

In her article, Nancy Stearns Bercaw voices the fears we all fight off watching the slow deterioration of the ones we love.  You can read the entire article, “Waiting for the Forgetting to Begin” on the New York Times website.

For more information on the 10 Early Signs and Symptoms of Alzheimer’s, check out the Alzheimer’s Association web page.