Professor Henry Brodaty, a co-director of the Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing (CHeBA) at the University of New South Wales, presented his insights to the National Press Club in July.
In a speech titled ‘Dementia, Hope Beckons’, he called for a dementia awareness campaign akin to the Cancer Council’s ‘slip, slop, slap’ campaign launched in 1981. With more than
Dementia is the second leading cause of death in Australia, and while scientists have yet to find a cure, there have been significant advancements in the development of diagnostic blood tests, as well as rehabilitation programs post-diagnosis and medications.
Though there is still a way to go, Professor Brodaty is raising awareness about the many steps that can be taken now to delay disease onset until much later in life – and, in some cases, at no added cost.