More than 200,000 people—206,366 to be precise—have been diagnosed with dementia in Greece, according to an international report released on Wednesday on World Alzheimer’s Day 2022.
According to the forecasts, the number of people with dementia in Greece is expected to climb to 298,617 by 2050.
Alzheimer’s Disease International (ADI) said in its statement on Wednesday that “up to 85 percent of the over 55 million people living with dementia may not receive post-diagnosis care.”
Both ADI and the Panhellenic Federation of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders have called on governments to apply key healthcare programs following diagnosis.
“We don’t question whether people with cancer need treatment,” ADI CEO Paola Barbarino said, “so why is it that when people receive a dementia diagnosis, they’re often not offered treatment or care? Repeatedly, they’re just told to get their end-of-life affairs in order.”
“Coupled with improving diagnosis rates, post-diagnosis dementia care must be recognized as a human right,” she said.
Most people suffering from dementia do not receive post-diagnosis care
“While dementia doesn’t yet have a disease-modifying ‘cure,’ there is clear evidence that demonstrates that appropriate post-diagnosis treatment, care and support significantly improve the quality of lives of those living with this disease, allowing many to maintain independence for longer,” Barbarino added.
“Part of the issue is that 62 percent of healthcare professionals wrongly believe dementia is a normal part of ageing, with this belief fueling the lack of support offered to people living with dementia,” says Barbarino.
“Another part is that healthcare systems around the world are not prepared for the growing public health crisis that dementia presents, and governments must act,” she said.
Diagnosing dementia could be entirely overhauled in the near future using new research conducted by Professor Dennis Velakoulis of the Royal Melbourne Hospital in Australia.
Velakoulis recently revealed that diagnosing dementia could become as simple as analyzing blood samples, allowing the often degenerative disease to be detected in patients at a much younger age.
The “World Alzheimer Report 2021” includes over fifty essays by leading experts from around the world and is supported by findings from three key global surveys, which received responses from 1,111 clinicians, 2,325 people with dementia and their care providers, and over one hundred national Alzheimer and dementia associations.
September has been designated by ADI as a world awareness month for Alzheimer’s, dementia, and related disorders.
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