1906-2006: 100 years of Alzheimer's Disease
No time to lose!
This year we commemorate one hundred years since Alois Alzheimer first described the disease that would later bear his name. Since 1906 many advances have been made in our understanding of dementia, but a century later we still find ourselves struggling against stigma and fighting for more awareness and acceptance of the disease.
Throughout 2006 Alzheimer's Disease International has been co-ordinating an awareness campaign with Alzheimer associations worldwide.
We ran international photography and journalism competitions, featuring judges from CNN, Reuters, the BBC, Time magazine and The Times. The focal event of the year was the Ascent for Alzheimer's: World Team, a hike up Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania for World Alzheimer's Day™ on 21 September. ADI recruited a team with the help of our member associations and raised over $250,000 through the event.
Finally, we are proud that Sir Cliff Richard, the British pop star, kindly agreed to be our Centenary Patron for the year. He is happy to lend his support to our campaign as his mother has Alzheimer's disease.