Your mom was diagnosed with early stage Alzheimer’s, and now she’s discovered she has breast cancer. Or you’ve been dealing with breast cancer, and find out that it’s not just chemo-brain causing those bothersome memory loss symptoms... How is breast cancer treatment for Alzheimer’s patients different than it is for most of us? And how do you manage it – as a patient, or caregiver?

Legendary country singer Glen Campbell, age 75. Pat Summit, winningest NCAA basketball coach in history, age 59. President Ronald Reagan. Actor Charlton Heston.

Someone you know and love.

Alzheimer’s Disease – a progressive loss of memory, then personality, then awareness, and finally life itself – will strike about 1 in every 85 people globally by the year 2050. It occurs most frequently in those over age 65, though early stages of the disease are now being identified in younger people.

There’s no known cure; and while theories abound as to its cause, none are proven (except genetics: up to 5% of Alzheimer’s cases are family-related). 

Current studies estimate that 19% of Americans age 65-74 suffer from some form of Alzheimer’s. With the first of America’s 70+ million Baby Boomers reaching age 65 this year, let’s do the math: barring any huge advances in research for a cure, over 13 million Boomers may experience Alzheimer’s in the next 20 years.

Age is also a critical risk factor for breast cancer. The older you are, the more likely you are to be diagnosed. Statistically speaking, your chance of developing breast cancer, at age 70, is about 1 in 26: just under 4%.

Which means about a quarter of a million Boomer women may be diagnosed with both breast cancer, and Alzheimer’s, over the next 20 years.

Will you be one of them, forced to hand your treatment decisions over to a (hopefully) loving caregiver? 

Or are you a caregiver right now?

Dealing with an Alzheimer’s/breast cancer diagnosis is surely one of the biggest challenges you’ll ever face, either as a patient, or a caregiver.

As a patient with very early stage Alzheimer’s, issues may range from forgetting appointments, to getting lost at the hospital, to neglecting to take medications.

You may not think you need one, but bring a friend or family member with you to every doctor’s appointment – both to make sure you get there, and to take notes during the visit. Even without Alzheimer’s, it’s a challenge to understand and remember the important information you receive from your oncologist; a companion is a definite help.

Also, be absolutely sure that your primary care physician (or whoever’s handling your AD treatment) and your oncologist are speaking with one another. You may assume each knows what treatments the other is administering; but this is often not the case. Your family doctor needs to know you’re dealing with a new and very difficult diagnosis; your oncologist needs to understand the challenges Alzheimer’s may present with your treatment plan.