I got dementia at 49 - here's the first sign my brain was in decline

I got dementia at 49 - here's the first sign my brain was in decline

나는 49세에 치매에 걸렸다 - 나의 뇌가 쇠퇴하고 있다는 첫 번째 징후는 다음과 같다

Daily Mail

Story by John Ely Deputy Health Editor For Mailonline

30/01/2025

 

A man diagnosed with dementia in his 40s has revealed that a slight change in his working abilities was the telltale sign his brain health was in decline.

Peter Alexander, now 56, never expected to be diagnosed with the memory robbing disorder when he went to see a neurologist in 2018.

한 40대 남성이 치매 진단을 받았는데, 업무 능력이 조금만 바뀌어도 뇌 건강이 나빠지고 있다는 명백한 신호라고 밝혔습니다.

현재 56세인 피터 알렉산더(Peter Alexander)는 2018년 신경과 의사를 만나러 갔을 때 기억력 저하 장애 진단을 받을 것이라고는 전혀 예상하지 못했습니다.

 

'I was starting to struggle to meet deadlines (at work), which had never been a problem before, and during meetings, I wouldn't be able to think of a word when speaking,' he told BBC Northern Ireland. 

He was sent for a scan which on 14 January that year, which revealed the devastating cause of his problems — frontotemporal dementia, a type of the disease more commonly diagnosed in younger patients. 

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'I was basically told that it was no longer safe for me to work because I have diminished judgment and I was losing my filter, so it was a lot to adapt to,' he said.  

Frontotemporal dementia is a rare form of the condition which accounts for around one in 30 cases in the UK. 

"나는 (직장에서) 마감 시간을 맞추기 위해 고군분투하기 시작했는데, 이전에는 한 번도 문제가 되지 않았고, 회의 중에는 말할 때 한 단어도 생각할 수 없었다"고 그는 BBC 북아일랜드에 말했다.

그는 그해 1월 14일 스캔을 위해 보내졌고, 그 결과 그의 문제의 파괴적인 원인인 전두측두엽 치매가 밝혀졌는데, 전두측두엽 치매는 젊은 환자들에게 더 흔하게 진단되는 질병의 일종이었습니다.

그는 "기본적으로 판단력이 흐려지고 필터를 잃어버리기 때문에 일하는 것이 더 이상 안전하지 않다는 말을 들었기 때문에 적응해야 할 것이 많았다"고 말했다.

전두측두엽 치매는 영국에서 30명 중 약 1명꼴로 발생하는 희귀한 형태의 치매입니다.

 

It gets its name from the parts of the brain it damages, the frontal and temporal lobes, areas that govern personality and behaviour, language and the ability to plan and organise.

Patients often notice bizarre changes in their personality — for instance making insensitive, outlandish comments, or becoming more disorganised than usual.

Peter Alexander, now 56, never expected to be diagnosed with the memory robbing disorder when he went to see a neurologist in 2018

 

In contrast to other forms of dementia, the memory problems most commonly associated with the condition only occur later stages of the disease. 

This means people can often suffer symptoms for years before getting an official diagnosis. 

'I might not always be able to express it in the same way, but I'm still the same person I was, inside I'm still Peter,' he said. 

 

 

Mr Alexander, speaking in a YouTube video, also spoke about his loss of filter had led to him using more of what he dubbed crudities like swear words, 

But he described this as a bit of a liberty: ‘People just say “Peter why are you saying that now in the past you would never have said that” but there's this disinhibition, which some regard as being inexplicable and just downright rude,’ he said.

‘But for me it's a liberty and a freedom that I didn't enjoy before with that side of the mind.’

‘They might be embarrassed by me don't be embarrassed it's just who I am it's the unvarnished Peter.’

He also shared how his dementia had diminished his ability to add numbers together, but had also given him an more musical voice a change he attributed to his brain relying on other sections to form words and sentences.

As part of this mission Mr Alexander has taken part in a documentary called Hear Our Voice which focuses people with young-onset dementia, medically defined as people being diagnosed with the condition before the age of 65

 

‘Because once this, some might regard as being the “logical” side of the brain is diminishing and deteriorating things are opened up on the other side of the brain,’ he said.

‘Rhythm, music, these things become increasingly fluid and it enables us to speak in a way that is more rhythmic.’

 

 

Mr Alexander is now working to address stigma around the disease and wants others to know that dementia is not a condition that only strikes the elderly.

As part of this mission, Mr Alexander has taken part in a documentary called Hear Our Voice which focuses on people with young-onset dementia — those diagnosed with the condition before the age of 65. 

Frontotemporal dementia develops when nerve cells in the brain become damaged as a result of a build-up of several harmful types of protein.

The loss of nerve cells eventually causes the brain the stop functioning correctly, ultimately leading to death.

Scientists are still working to understand what triggers this toxic build-up of protein though for it's estimated to be genetic in about a third of patients. 

The average survival time for a frontotemporal dementia patient is about 8-10 years after symptoms start, though medics say this is highly variable between individuals.

But they can also be a sign of dementia — the memory-robbing condition plaguing nearly 1million Brits and 7million Americans

그러나 그들은 또한 치매의 징후일 수 있습니다 — 거의 100만 명의 영국인과 700만 명의 미국인을 괴롭히는 기억력 저하 상태입니다

 

It is incurable and progressive, meaning it will get worse over time. 

While there is no cure early diagnosis is considered key as medications and treatments can help combat the symptoms.

Frontotemporal dementia is one of the leading causes of young-onset dementia.

The latest figures suggest almost 71,000 people in Britain are currently living with young-onset dementia, accounting for about 7.5 per cent of all diagnoses.

This is a rise of 69 per cent from the figure recorded in 2014. 

Scientists aren't yet sure of the drivers behind the rise, but they believe it may be due to the same factors causing an uptick in the condition in all ages. 

This includes the ageing population, increasing obesity, poor diets and greater awareness of the condition leading to more diagnoses.

 

Dementia affects an estimated one million people in the UK and has a variety of causes, such as Alzheimer's disease and reduced blood flow to the brain following a stroke, known as vascular dementia.

치매는 영국에서 약 100만 명에게 영향을 미치며 알츠하이머병, 혈관성 치매로 알려진 뇌졸중 후 뇌로 가는 혈류 감소와 같은 다양한 원인이 있습니다.

Around 900,000 Britons are currently thought to have the memory-robbing disorder. But University College London scientists estimate this will rise to 1.7 million within two decades as people live longer. It marks a 40 per cent uptick on the previous forecast in 2017

현재 약 900,000명의 영국인이 기억력 저하 장애를 앓고 있는 것으로 생각됩니다. 그러나 유니버시티 칼리지 런던(University College London)의 과학자들은 사람들이 더 오래 살면서 이 수치가 20년 내에 170만 명으로 증가할 것으로 추정한다. 이는 2017년 이전 전망치보다 40% 증가한 수치입니다

 

Recent analysis by the Alzheimer's Society estimated the overall annual cost of the dementia to the UK is £42billion a year, with families bearing the brunt. 

 An ageing population means these costs – which include lost earnings of unpaid carers – are set to soar to £90billion in the next 15 years.

알츠하이머 협회(Alzheimer's Society)의 최근 분석에 따르면 영국의 치매로 인한 연간 전체 비용은 연간 420억 파운드에 달하며, 가족들이 가장 큰 피해를 입는 것으로 추정됩니다.

 인구 고령화는 무급 간병인의 소득 손실을 포함한 이러한 비용이 향후 15년 동안 900억 파운드로 치솟을 것임을 의미합니다.

 

Around 944,000 in the UK are thought to be living with dementia while the figure is thought to be around 7million in the US. 

Memory problems, thinking and reasoning difficulties and language problems are common early symptoms of the condition, which then worsen over time. 

A separate Alzheimer's Research UK analysis found 74,261 people died from dementia in 2022 compared with 69,178 a year earlier, making it the country's biggest killer.