About 5.8 million people in the United States have Alzheimer’s disease according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(CDC). Across the U.S. one in 12 Asian American and Pacific Islanders 65 years and older have Alzheimer’s.
Alzheimer’s is the most common type of dementia and is a progressive brain disease that affects a person’s brain functions. People slowly face memory loss, the inability to speak or to take care of themselves and general independence.
“I think Alzheimer’s is a horrible disease that I’m personally mad at,” said Richard Lui to NewsChannel 5 Nashville. “But on the flip side, there’s also what we must do as we battle this thing. There is joy despite difficulties.”
The AHEAD Study is run by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and is federally funded. AHEAD conducts research into Alzheimer’s and how to treat it. There is no cure for Alzheimer’s, so clinical trials and studies like AHEAD are the only way one will be created.
Out of all of the Alzheimer’s research participants, AHEAD says AAPIs make up less than 5% of them.
2020 research from the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, published on the NIH website, highlighted the growing concerns of Alzheimer’s in the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islanders (AANHPIs) community. This research showed that this group is one of the fastest-growing in the U.S.
“AANHPIs comprise an older adult population that is expected to surge by 145% between 2010 and 2030,” the study said.
It went on to say that Asian Americans face a high risk of under-detection, missed diagnosis and poor management of dementia. Compared to others, Asian Americans are also less informed about the risk factors for Alzheimer’s and face “significant barriers including cultural misperceptions and stigma” that can interfere with getting tested and treated.
Overall the study concludes there is not enough recent data or understanding about AANHPIs and Alzheimer’s.
“What’s not unique about the AAPI community when it comes to this is nobody talks about it,” Lui said to NewsChannel 5 Nashville. “We sometimes forget that it’s just as deadly to us as it is to any other community.”
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