Seems like the message is reaching Washington: SOS Alzheimer catastrophe stop approaching fast stop!
They seem to be in a hurry to catch up to the wave.
Usually when surfing it is not the best idea to let a wave pass you by, because exponential waves are fairly hard to catch up to.
The Alzheimer activism community was also probably a step behind on this one as well.
The bill had bipartisan support was it was only a question of how big the cheque would be for.
It is hard to believe that research funding in this fiscal year was only measured in the millions when the
anticipated cumulative cost looking only a decade ahead is measured in the TRILLIONS!!
I hope some of this money will find its way into some lower end projects.
I worry that it will all be spent on high end theoretical ideas, while ignoring some less glamorous research.
For example, a $50 million competitive bid genetics research contract would be fine by me.
Sure it is almost just sending 23andme, Ancestry.com, FTDNA ... a big pay day, though such a project
could have a big pay out for everyone. If they have the samples archived, then the results could roll out
fast. Walking Alzheimer genetics across the line is certainly worth some of the billion dollars. It makes no sense
that there is so much low hanging fruit still hanging on the trees!
Would also love to see an off label treatment initiative. The recent DNAse1 pancreatic enzyme story springs to mind.
Not providing a regulated framework in which these types of discoveries could be tested does not make sense. With
the DNAse1 we would know in two days whether it worked: can we really afford not to test these ideas? Without some
sort of a push, DNAse1 will join a lengthening list of AD medications that have sat on the shelf for years without any forward
progress.
http://www.alz.org/news_and_events_alzh ... y_week.asp
