08/24/2026
Alzheimer’s is one type of brain disease that ultimately leads to dementia. A person can have Alzheimer’s disease for several years before dementia develops. Like other diseases such as cancer, medical changes begin to occur long before symptoms become obvious to the doctor or to family and friends. Someone in the early stages may have a mild memory problem that goes unnoticed by most people. With time, as the disease progresses, this person may develop ‘Alzheimer’s dementia.’
Dementia is a medical condition that involves a loss of short-term memory and other thinking abilities such as language and attention, impaired ability to carry out everyday tasks (like driving, finances, self-care), and a gradual shrinking of the brain caused by extensive loss of brain cells. Dementia can be caused by different types of brain diseases.