It is with great pleasure that we introduce the 47th edition of our Dementia in Europe magazine. Following the 34th Alzheimer Europe Conference (34AEC) in Geneva, (Switzerland), it has been a busy period with lots of interesting developments across Europe in relation to policy, research, culture, advocacy and dementia care. In our first section on Alzheimer Europe’s work, we look back at our most recent European Parliament lunch debate, hosted by Tilly Metz MEP (Greens/EFA, Luxembourg). We also recount our Anti-Stigma Award dinner, hosted by Nina Carberry MEP (EPP, Ireland), at which the winner of the Award, Magnus Renggli and the runners-up Andreas Kreimaier and Ofelya Kamavosyan were able to showcase their fantastic work before accepting their prizes! We then look at the publication of our Dementia in Europe Yearbook 2024, focused on independent living and housing for people with dementia, identifying gaps and sharing good practice.
Turning to European projects, we are excited to introduce three new projects in which we are involved: Predict-FTD, which aims to validate a comprehensive set of biomarkers and develop a diagnostic tool that uses artificial intelligence (AI) for swift and accurate diagnosis; Dorian Gray, which aims to devise personalised risk stratification and holistic management for prevention of cognitive impairment in patients with different cardiovascular phenotypes; and, FluiDx-AD, which examines a novel test trio to detect amyloid beta peptides in saliva and blood for enhanced diagnosis and management of Alzheimer's disease. We then speak to T. Rune Nielsen, who led the recently-concluded TIMING project, to find out about the project’s work on improving timely diagnosis of dementia in people from minority ethnic groups. In our final article in the Alzheimer Europe section, we learn more about how the European Working Group of People with Dementia (EWGPWD) and the European Dementia Carers Working Group (EDCWG) have contributed their lived experience to the PANEUCARE project, which focuses on multidirectional knowledge transfer.
We open the Policy Watch section with positive news from Hungary, where a new dementia strategy is under development. We look at the conference on dementia, held by our national member in Hungary, the Social Cluster Association, before hearing from the Deputy State Secretary Attila Beneda about what to expect in the new strategy. Moving to the European level, we speak to the Co-Chairs of the European Alzheimer’s Alliance about their priorities for the year ahead and how they intend to support our work to prioritise dementia. Continuing the focus on the EU, we look at some of the new College of Commissioners, focusing on those whose remits have the most relevance for people living with dementia. Our next article recaps our “Dementia Needs EU” European Election Campaign which ran throughout 2024, looking at the results of the campaign, as well as the activities of Alzheimer Europe and our members on the first ever “European Parliament Dementia Day” held on 10 December 2024, which officially marked the end of this campaign – a huge thank you to everyone who supported the campaign and helped raise awareness of dementia amongst European decision-makers!
Turning to international matters, we are pleased to feature an article from Marine Uldry of the European Disability Forum (EDF), who explains the forthcoming review of the EU by the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, as well as EDF’s work in developing a submission to the process. We close the policy section with a brief overview of the most recent meeting of the European Group of Governmental Experts on Dementia, held in Geneva just prior to 34AEC. In our final section, Dementia in Society, we have an article about the participation of Kevin Quaid and Lieselotte Klotz, respectively Chair and Vice-Chair of the EWGPWD, at the European Day of Persons with Disabilities in November 2024. We then take a look at the importance of art and creativity for people living with dementia. In this two-part article, we first hear from Annick Germeys, a member of the EDCWG, who shares the story of her husband Geert's sculpture work. We then hear from former EWGPWD member Pia Knudsen, who recently got a new job teaching art, having lost her previous teaching post when she was diagnosed.
Following this, Hassan Fadli details his impressive campaign “5 Ironmans Beat Alzheimer” for which he completed five “ironman” challenges in a year, to raise awareness about dementia and which his team has captured in a documentary film. Rounding off the magazine, Philip Van Kerrebroeck, Vice-Chair of the European Association of Urology, tells us about the “Urge to Act” campaign and its recent awareness-raising event involving the “Manneken Pis” statue in Brussels (Belgium). Be sure to check out our special supplement to this magazine, focusing on our Annual Conference in Geneva. It llooks back at some of the key moments from 34AEC, as well as reflections from keynote speakers and from our co-hosts Alzheimer Switzerland and Alzheimer Geneva. We hope you enjoy this edition of our Dementia in Europe magazine! The magazine can be downloaded, here: https://bit.ly/DementiaInEurope47