Accepting that a loved one has any type of dementia can be difficult. When someone we care about develops frontotemporal dementia, also known as Pick's disease, the shock can be particularly hard to absorb, because one of the defining characteristics of frontotemporal dementia is personality change. Spouses of many years will often feel that their husband or wife has totally changed, and they are at a loss to explain the "stranger" their spouse has become.

Frontotemporal dementia is thought to...