Brenda: We're a strong couple together.
We're very positive in everything we try to do.
We were absolutely devastated.
Ann: For me it was a relief really because I felt once he was diagnosed it was just good
to know that there was a reason for it.
I don't think he found it so much of a relief because I don't think he really believed there
was much wrong with his memory.
Hilary: A lot of people say, ‘what's the point in having a diagnosis if there's no
cure?’
And it does make you wonder, but for me yes I'm glad I got the diagnosis.
At least with the diagnosis you can make – well you can try and make plans for what you're
going to do for the next however long you've got.
Dan Harwood: Dementia is an overall term for a range of conditions.
It isn't just one specific disease.
Most people have heard of Alzheimer's disease which is just one type of dementia.
Despite what many people think, dementia is not a normal part of ageing.
Dementia occurs when the brain is affected by disease.
Dementia affects everyone differently and can cause a wide range of symptoms.
These can include problems with memory, thinking, concentration, and language.
People may become confused or struggle with how they see things.
Dementia can also cause changes in mood or emotions and affect how someone behaves.
Unfortunately, dementia is progressive and symptoms will get worse over time.
There are over 100 types of dementia.
The most common are Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia.
Sometimes, people have a combination of both, which is called mixed dementia.
Less common types of dementia are dementia with Lewy bodies and frontotemporal dementia.
At the moment, scientists don't know why some people get dementia.
It's known that ageing, genes, health and lifestyle all play a part.
There are 800,000 people living with dementia in the UK.
The chance of developing it increases rapidly with age.
One in 14 people over 65 years of age and one in 6 people over 80 has dementia.
So most people with dementia are older, but dementia does also affect younger people of
working age.
People who are diagnosed with dementia who are under 65 are said to have early onset
or young onset dementia.
Peter: Well I can remember it quite distinctly.
Because Hilary came home and I could see in her face there was something wrong.
I said to her, ‘what's wrong?’
She said, ‘I might as well tell you, I've got Alzheimer's’.
Hilary: Looking back – I can go back 15 years – and see things starting to change.
But not to a level where it bothered me.
The key thing that made me go back to the doctor when I got the diagnosis last year
was I'd had a meeting – a pretty intensive meeting.
It was a one to one meeting with somebody I hadn't met before.
A few weeks later I was at a conference and this person came up to me and said, ‘hello
Hilary how are you?’
And I would have sworn I had never met that person before.
I had – I just didn't recognise him.
That freaked me out a fair bit, having sat opposite somebody for two hours having an
intense conversation with them and then not recognising them just a couple of weeks later.
That was what finally prompted me to go back last year.
And as a result of the tests and the brain scan I got the diagnosis of early-onset Alzheimer's.
Dan Harwood: To find out more about dementia, visit alzheimers.org.uk/aboutdementia