Alzheimer's
Picture a person living with Alzheimer’s disease. Many living with the disease may not be who you’re imagining. Alzheimer’s can look like anyone you know—your neighbor, uncle, co-worker, friend. Many with early-stage Alzheimer’s are still working, enjoying trips and sharing quality time with family. They’re still living independent lives. That’s valuable time to prolong as much as possible.
:00-:07
[Piano music plays in the background.]
[Red Lilly Logo animation appears on screen on a white background.]
[Video shows scenes of the hills and trees of Southern California.]
:08-:29
[Video shows a woman playing piano, then flashes to black and white photos showing her parents’ wedding and her childhood.]
MYRA: I absolutely love music. My family is from Cuba, and they were Cuban immigrants, but I was born in the U.S. And it was a household filled with music. There are so many beautiful Cuban songs that my mother would be singing. It was just a lovely growing-up time.
:30-:48
[A woman stands in her home, holding sheet music, singing in Spanish. We then hear her speaking over the music.]
MYRA: I'm Myra Solano Garcia…
:49-:51
[Myra is speaking to the camera, with colorful windows in the background.]
MYRA: … and I am living with Alzheimer’s disease.
:52-1:03
[Classical piano music plays in the background as a photo of Myra singing on stage appears.]
MYRA: For so many people, they're so afraid of being on stage. But for me, it has always been so natural. I had opportunities …
1:04-1:11
[The music continues, and the video cuts to Myra speaking to the camera. A title appears with Myra Solano Garcia, Living with Alzheimer’s.]
MYRA: … to travel across the country and just enjoy the power of music.
1:12-1:41
[A man sitting at a piano speaks to the camera. A title appears with Shawn Kirchner, Composer, Songwriter and Publisher. The video shows Myra singing a duet at church as he speaks.]
SHAWN: Myra had a really big career back east as a soloist. So when she first arrived, we were so excited, and we worked with her a lot as a featured soloist. But more recently, I remember one choir practice thinking the question she's asking, describing the page number, the measure number, is just not computing. And it didn't make any sense to me. Once we had the diagnosis of Alzheimer's, then I'm like, oh, my gosh. But I mean, all things withstanding, it's just fantastic that we're able to work with her and that she's contributing so much.
1:42-2:13
[Myra sits at a table in her living room, looking through old photos. We see photos fade in and out on screen as she speaks.]
MYRA: This photo is from when I was just hired at the University of LaVerne as a vice president. I looked a lot younger then. I wonder why? The first two years, I felt were very strong years. It was about the third year when things started not feeling right, and I went to different neurologists and they would say, “No, you're fine. You have ADD.”
2:14-2:21
[Myra is speaking to the camera.]
MYRA: And to be honest, I was thrilled, because I really feared that it was going to be Alzheimer's disease.
2:22-2:39
[More photos of Myra.]
MYRA: When I finally got the Alzheimer's diagnosis, I was relieved because I knew that I was still having cognitive problems. A neuropsychiatrist encouraged me to enter a clinical trial, and I'm so very grateful.
2:40-3:03
[Myra is in her home singing “Someone to Watch Over Me.” We see photos of Myra and her husband. We then see Myra driving in the car and running in her neighborhood.]
MYRA: (speaking) My husband takes great care of me. We have a lot of fun on the weekends. We get in the car, and we just go traveling throughout California. Not too long ago, we did a 5K race. I came in second place in my age group.
3:04-3:16
[Myra is speaking to the camera.]
MYRA: While I have Alzheimer's disease, I can no longer do numbers. I have difficulty with names, but I can still sing.
3:17-3:51
[We hear Myra singing “Amazing Grace” while the camera shows an exterior shot of a continuing care center near her home. We then see Myra singing to a person in the memory unit at the center and continuing to sing “Amazing Grace.”]
MYRA: I volunteer at a continuing care organization, singing with the memory unit residents, and I am fully cognizant that I'm going to be following in their paths. But in the meantime, it just brings me joy. You can see that they're confused, but we start singing, and so many of them know all the words. I think that that is the power of music.
3:52-4:03
[Shawn is speaking to the camera. We then see shots of Myra smiling while volunteering in the memory care unit.]
SHAWN: Music, they say lights up so many areas of the brain, and so it makes total sense that Myra feels at home, despite whatever is going on with her diagnosis. Music is with us to the end.
4:04-4:33
[A choir sings as the camera shows the exterior of a church. The video shows Myra singing as part of her church choir.]
MYRA: I'm so grateful I found a church community that really sings to my soul. I love singing and I love bringing music to others. We're all going to go at some point in time. And if I go via Alzheimer's disease, it is what it is.
4:34-4:47
[The video shows Myra looking at old photos, driving, pulling trash cans into her garage, reading while sitting on her couch, and then shows her again speaking to the camera.]
MYRA: Because I can still do things that are important to me … I can drive, I can take care of the house. I can read. I'm going to focus on those, and I'm not going to focus on the things that I can't do. So I'm not afraid.
4:48-4:50
[Myra is on her back porch, looking to the sky, with her garden in the background.]
MYRA: I'm just living life. And loving life.
4:51-4:55
[Music fades out in the background.]
[The Red Lilly logo appears and fades on a white background.]
Time is Worth Fighting For
Alzheimer's disease progresses slowly over 10-20 years.1,2 During that time, people can have a spectrum of symptoms, from non-symptomatic (preclinical) Alzheimer’s to severe dementia.3 As the disease progresses, Alzheimer’s impacts day-to-day life more and more. It interferes with a person’s routines, relationships, hobbies and, ultimately, their independence.
The scientific advancements that are emerging, and on the horizon, require a timely, accurate diagnosis. At the first sign of changes in memory or thinking, people should see their doctor for an assessment. If someone is diagnosed too late, that can impact the potential effectiveness of approved treatment options.
You can learn more and sign up to receive updates on memory and thinking issues at morethannormalaging.lilly.com.
Living a New Normal
Allan's optimistic spirit remains even after his Alzheimer's diagnosis. He's making the most of his new normal by spending quality time with family doing the activities he loves.
Scientific Advancements Have Potential to Provide New Hope
People living with Alzheimer’s don’t have time to waste. We’re taking on Alzheimer’s from every angle: advancing the science that could lead to breakthrough therapies; discovering new ways to find timely and accurate diagnoses; and partnering across our industry and beyond to work with more speed.
Through ongoing clinical trials and cutting-edge research, we’re urgently developing potential treatments and tools to help slow disease progression. It’s all with the hope to give people something invaluable: more options that could potentially provide more time.
Better Access, More Possibilities
While we’re not where we want to be—with a cure for Alzheimer’s disease—we’re making significant progress. Science has advanced to provide better diagnostic tools and treatments. But we also need this innovation to reach people living with Alzheimer’s.
That means healthcare providers need to have conversations sooner to better check for signs and symptoms of the disease. People need access to the tools that help accurately diagnose their problems with memory and thinking and the potential causes. And people living with Alzheimer’s and their families need to have appropriate reimbursements for the tools and approved treatments that may provide them more quality time.
It’s crucial for stakeholders—industry, government, healthcare, and advocates—to work together to strengthen our system’s capacity to address these issues.
Additional Resources
1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/aging/aginginfo/alzheimers.htm. Accessed February 13, 2024.
2. Porsteinsson AP, Isaacson RS, Knox S, et al. Diagnosis of early Alzheimer’s disease: clinical practice in 2021. J Prev Alzheimers Dis. 2021;8:371-386.
3. Aisen PS, Cummings J, Jack CR, et al. On the path to 2025: understanding the Alzheimer’s disease continuum. Alz Res Therapy 2017;9(1):60. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13195-017-0283-5
4. Galvin JE, Aisen P, Langbaum JB, et al. Early stages of Alzheimer’s disease: evolving the care team for optimal patient management. Front Neurol. 2021;11:592302.