G8 will develop dementia cure or treatment by 2025

[grey]

Well done the dementia community. They deserve it! Now they have moved out of the Cinderella role and have joined the flagship diseases of cancer and heart.

I hope we can benefit from advances made in treatment and understanding the cause of this devastating disease. But I do worry that funding of neurological research may now be diverted from other Cinderella diseases including Parkinson's.

The arguments for advancing the treatment of Parkinson's are in many ways the same as those for dementia. But the public do not perceive Parkinson's as a threat. What can we do to inform them of the threat of Parkinson's and the devastation it causes to sufferers and their families?

[Court]

You are quite right in saying that the general public are not aware of the many facets that Parkinsons presents. It is not just a tremor, but is life changing for most sufferers. The pain that comes with Parkinsons, the inability to do many things that we used to take for granted, the loss of our jobs, the break up of families, the tiredness that strikes without warning. These are just some of the things that some, not all, people with Parkinsons suffer from. Quite apart from the fact that no two people have identical symptoms. But I am at a loss on how we get this message over to people. We need more publicity for one thing or we will always remain the Cinderella illness.

[etterus]

The process of dementia is probably the same for PD... one is in the cerebral cortex affecting the cognitive functions. The other is in the midbrain affecting motor and non-motor functions. Both are dementias.