Oklahoma is setting its sights on becoming a national hub for Alzheimer's disease research and treatment, as stated by Sen. Mark Mann during a recent Senate’s Business and Insurance Committee meeting. Alzheimer's disease, a leading form of dementia that affects memory and self-care capabilities, currently touches the lives of more than seven million Americans, including around 10 percent of Oklahomans above the age of 65, according to the Oklahoma Senate.
In the drive to elevate the state's status in combating Alzheimer's, Mann pointed to the progress made in recent years and the critical research taking place within Oklahoma's borders. "Alzheimer’s is a devastating illness. I don’t know anybody that it’s not affected, either with a family member or a friend, but there have been tremendous advances in the past two years, with important research happening right here in our state," Mann told the Oklahoma Senate. The senator's comments echoed the personal narrative of the Sloans from Tulsa, who faced the disease's uncertainty head-on when Ashley Sloan, a speech therapist, began exhibiting symptoms at 49.
Lance Sloan, Ashley's husband, expressed the couple's harrowing journey through the medical system before an FDA-approved blood test provided a much-needed earlier diagnosis. "It was scary, it was agonizing. We really didn’t know where to turn," he recounted, as stated by the Oklahoma Senate. For the Sloans, the new diagnostic tool could have spared months of frustration and anxiety, allowing them to access therapies and medications sooner to manage the disease's progression.
Highlighting the disparity in Alzheimer's impact between genders, Dr. Sarah Ocañas of the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation conveyed to the committee that women are disproportionately affected. "Females have a higher lifetime risk and have worse cognitive decline, worse pathology in their brain, but when males do get Alzheimer’s disease, they tend to die more quickly," Ocañas explained. Striving for scientific breakthroughs, her research is focused on the brain's immune system and how it might be harnessed to address the disease. Ocañas is hopeful that the efforts will anchor the establishment of a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Alzheimer's center in Oklahoma, as reported by the Oklahoma Senate.
Mann remains vocal about the importance of Alzheimer's research for Oklahoma, underscoring the profound impact the affliction has not just on those diagnosed, but also on their loved ones who provide care. The advancements taking place in Oklahoma's research institutions, according to the senator, "can make a huge difference for countless Oklahomans," signaling a dedication to this cause that will likely persist well into the foreseeable future, as per the Oklahoma Senate.
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