In 2019 and 2020 my wife (Ellen) and I started to have some concerns regarding my memory which has always been an issue for me but it seemed like it might be getting worse. 

Our son had been diagnosed with ADHD and was on a drug to help regulate that.  It occurred to me that reflecting back on my childhood and as an adult , given my memory as a child and an adult that perhaps that was an issue for me as well.  My physician suggested that I get tested for ADHD.    I found a person who seemed to be a leader in testing for ADHD. 

I “aced” most of the tests…. except for memory:

Memory was briefly evaluated by administering one visual and one verbal memory task. When asked to copy a complex geometric figure and then draw it from memory after a short and a long delay, Tim struggled considerably with scores below the 5th percentile. His auditory memory was in a comparable range. He completed a list learning task that included 5 learning trials.

He suggested that ADHD may be a factor but that I should see a Neurologist.  My doctor did not have a recommendation so after some research I  connected with a doctor at the Clinic of Neurology in Edina.  After additional testing she suggested that I might have Mild Cognitive Impairment when can be an early sign of Alzheimer’s. 

The only way to definitively diagnose Alzheimer’s (I believe) is through a spinal tap – where a sample of the spinal fluid is removed and tested for the ALZ plaque that accumulates in the brain.  This is a relatively new method of testing for Alzheimer’s.  It was done at a hospital and took about two hours.  The result came back positive. Given the symptoms I was having we were not surprised with the outcome but of course also very concerned.  Alzheimer’s is bit terrifying.  It progresses slowing and gradually robs one of memory and other brain functions and there is no cure. 

I (and Ellen) received the results from my Neurologist and we talked about possible options.  She mentioned that there were drugs that were likely coming on the market that in clinical trials seemed to slow or even stop the progression.  The FDA had approved one of them – Lequembie manufactured by Nihon Eisai Co. Ltd. which is a subsidiary of BioGen and was approved in July of 2023  and another Donanemab  from Eli Lilly was (and still is when I upload this post) awaiting approval and it was unsure when it would be approved.  On paper it seemed that Donanemab might be better because it is administered every 4 weeks as opposed to Lequembie which is administered every 2 weeks for 18 months or so. Given the uncertainty of when / of Donanebmab would be approved, I decided to go with the bird in the hand and started the Lequembie treatments.