What is Alzheimer’s?

Alzheimer’s disease is an irreversible, progressive, terminal brain disorder that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills and, eventually, the ability to carry out the simplest tasks. Some 5.7 million Americans have Alzheimer’s.

In most people with the disease—those with the late-onset type—symptoms first appear in their mid-60s. Younger-onset Alzheimer’s occurs between a person’s 30s and mid-60s and is very rare.

People with Alzheimer’s have trouble doing everyday things like driving a car, cooking a meal, or paying bills. They may ask the same questions over and over, get lost easily, lose things or put them in odd places, and find even simple things confusing.

The time from diagnosis to death varies—as little as three or four years if the person is older than 80 when diagnosed, to as long as 10 or more years if the person is younger.

To learn more, go to alz.org, the website of the Alzheimer’s Association, which operates a 24/7 helpline at (800) 272-3900.