Controversy and Caring: An Update on Current Issues in Dementia

Over the past decade, Americans have become increasingly familiar with the terms Alzheimer's disease and dementia Although not fully understanding them, most Americans are aware and fearful of such conditions and frustrated by the slow progress in, or lack of, treatment for them. The public is overwhelmed by marketing and media efforts to portray scientists as close to a cure and able to manage the disease with current medications despite almost no evidence to support this assertion. Furthermore, being diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease brings messages of hopelessness associated with the progressive nature of the disease. As the pendulum swings from promises of "miracle cures" to abject hopelessness, we miss the treatment forest for the trees, neglecting a critical integrated-care approach that must emphasize both nonpharmacological as well as pharmacological treatment approaches