How Culture, Society and Politics Shaped Alzheimer’s Disease Research

Image
Jason Karlawish
Jason Karlawish, MD

Dr. Jason Karlawish returns to the podcast to continue our discussion on his new book, The Problem of Alzheimer's: How Science, Culture, and Politics Turned a Rare Disease Into a Crisis and What We Can Do About It. In this episode, Dr. Karlawish discusses pivotal cultural and political moments that influenced Alzheimer’s disease research, as well as the possibilities of drug treatments in the future. Guest: Jason Karlawish, MD, co-director, Penn Memory Center

Episode Topics:

  • Who is the unwitting revolutionary? 1:11
  • What happened to the early German scientists researching Alzheimer’s disease? 6:03
  • What essay was released in 1976 and why was it pivotal to Alzheimer’s research? 7:25
  •  How did the changes in psychiatry, geriatric care and gender roles affect Alzheimer’s disease research? 10:42
  • What was the internal struggle over a name? 14:51
  • What were key moments in U.S. political history that influenced Alzheimer’s disease? 18:19
  • Where do you think the U.S. went wrong in approaching Alzheimer’s disease? 21:05
  • How is Alzheimer’s disease a humanitarian crisis? 22:43
  • What is your opinion on the drug approach for Alzheimer’s disease? 23:53
  •  Do you have hope for a pill treatment in the future? 24:48

 

Learn more about Jason Karlawish's book

Find Dementia Matters online

Follow us on Facebook

Follow us on Twitter

Subscribe to this podcast through Apple PodcastsSpotifyPodbean, or Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. 

Show Notes

Image
Dementia Matters promo for The Problem of Alzheimer's

Dr. Karlawish's new book is The Problem of Alzheimer's: How Science, Culture, and Politics Turned a Rare Disease into a Crisis and What We Can Do About It. Learn more at his website.

Dr. Karlawish is co-director of the Penn Memory Center.

This is part two in a four-part series. Listen to Part 1, "The Past, Present and Future of Alzheimer's Disease Research."