This morning’s WSJ tells the story of Brian Kammerer who developed Alzheimer’s in his 40s, and the toll the illness takes on him and his family.
Early on, the CFO for a hedge fund forgets what a stapler is and calls his wife from the bathroom for help identifying it. He winds up unemployed. He stops driving.
Even now, at 51, his math skills remain sharp, but he has trouble recognizing neighbors he has known for two decades. Sometimes, he takes a cab to a nearby golf course without telling anyone and hitches a ride back from a stranger, says his wife, Kathy.
Some half a million Americans are living with early-onset Alzheimer’s, the WSJ says. An explainer from the federal Agency for Health Research and Quality gives some signs that go beyond basic loss of short-term memory:
- Problems finding or saying the right word.
- Inability to recognize objects.
- Forgetting how to use simple, ordinary things, such as a pencil.
- Forgetting to turn off the stove, close windows, or lock doors.
Now, just because you have occasional lapses — forgetting a name, leaving a window open — it doesn’t mean you have Alzheimer’s.
And, AHRQ reminds us, many cases of dementia aren’t Alzheimer’s. Often, they’re caused by factors that can be modified, such as depression, alcohol, or medication.
WSJ reporter Shirley Wang talks with Kathy Kammerer about the warning signs for her husband’s Alzheimer’s in this podcast.
Photo of Brian Kammerer and his children from the Kammerer family