An experimental treatment happens to be the solution to delay Alzheimer's symptoms in some people. These people are the ones who are genetically destined to get the disease in their 40s or 50s. These new findings form ongoing research has now been caught up in Trump administration funding delas. The early results of the study has been published on Wednesday and the participants too are worried that politics could cut their access to a possible lifeline.

One of the participants had said, "It is still a study but it has given me an extension to my life that I never banked on having." The participant is named Jake Henrichs, form New York City, who is 50 years old. He is one of them to be treated in that study for more than a decade now and has remained symptom-free despite inheriting an Alzheimer's-causing gene that had killed his father and brother around the same age.

Slowing Down The Symptoms

Two drugs which can modestly slow down early-stage Alzheimer's are sold in the United States. These drugs clear the brain of one of its hallmarks, a sticky gunk-like part called the amyloid. However, there have not been any hints that removing amyloid far earlier, way many years before the first symptoms appear, may postpone the disease.

How Was The Research Conducted?

The research is led by Washington University in St Louis, which involved families that passed down rare gene mutation as participants. This meant it was almost guaranteed that they will develop symptoms at the same age their affected relatives did.

The new findings is based on a subset of 22 participants who received amyloid-removing drugs the longest, on average eight years. Long-term amyloid removal cut in half their risk of symptom onset. The study is published in the journal Lancet Neurology.

Washington University's Dr Randall Bateman, who directs the Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer's Network of studies involving families with these rare genes says, "What we want to determine over the next five years is how strong is the protection. Will they ever get the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease if we keep treating them?”

The researchers before though did not know what exactly caused Alzheimer's which affects nearly 7 million Americans, most of them in their later life. However, it is clear that these silent changes occur in the brain at least two decades before the first symptom shows up. The big contributor. At some point amyloid buildup can trigger a protein named tau that then starts to kill neurons, which can lead to cognitive decline.

Researchers are now thus studying the Tau-fighting drugs and are looking into other factors, like inflammation, brain's immune cells and certain virus.

The National Institute of Health (NIH) has expanded its focus as researchers have found more reasons for Alzheimer's. In 2013, the NIH's National Institute on Aging funded 14 trials of possible Alzheimer's drugs over a third targeting amyloid. By last fall, there were 68 drugs and 18% of them target amyloid. However, there are scientists too who think that amyloid is not everything and their is way more in the brain tissue, immune cells, and more which can be studied.

The two legendary German twins, Alice and Ellen Kessler, the greatest of entertainers, who rose to fame in the post war era died at the age of 89. They truly were inseparable, as they chose to leave the world in the same way they came, together. The sisters chose medically assisted dying on November 17, as reported by the German newspaper Bild.

The twin had shared that they "no longer wanted to live" and the decision to die together was made together with clarity and intention.

How Does Assisted Dying Work?

In terms of the Kessler Sisters, the police confirmed that there were no signs of foul play. The German Society for Humane Dying also stated that the sisters had chosen assisted suicide. This practice is legal in the country since 2019.

Read: Uruguay Becomes The First Catholic Latin American Country To Legalize Euthanasia

How Is Assisted Dying Different Than Euthanasia?

In assisting dying, the law allows and enables the individuals to self-administer the medication, so the choice and the agency to die remains with the individuals.

What Is Assisted Dying?

This refers to the practice of ending a person's life through medication. However, when the term 'dying' is replaced by 'suicide', the medication is then administered by self, whereas in other procedures, it may be done by a medical professional. Thus the term 'assisted dying' refers to both assisted suicide and euthanasia.

In assisted suicide, the person's will to die matters, and it may not require a terminal diagnosis. However, this definition to varies from country to country.

Also Read: Can Right To Die Be Practiced By Non-Terminally Ill Patients?

In many ways can assisted suicide be practiced including providing lethal medication, or helping the individual travel to another jurisdiction to die.

What Does The Law In Germany Say About Assisted Suicide?

In 2020, Germany's Federal Constitutional Court determined that individual autonomy should include the choice to die. This means that every person could decide for themselves. The law has a wider scope, which also includes any person helping an individual who has chosen to end their life, and they cannot be penalized for doing so. However, this condition only comes from the person who wants to end their life, and the decision must be taken freely.

The debate was introduced in 2015 due to the section 271 of the criminal code, which made assisted suicide almost impossible in Germany. The law stated that anyone who aided someone to take their own life could be jailed for up to three years.

Palliative sedation is administered to prevent suffering and ensure a dignified death. However, medication aims to relieve patients of unbearable pain, this is why its use as an alternative medically assisted suicide raises concerns. Currently, there is no approved medication for medically assisted suicide in Germany. though several medications are could be used, for instance in the United States, severely ill patients receive high doses of sodium pentobarbital and thiopental. However, pentobarbital is only approved for veterinary use in Germany.

In Germany, the intravenous route is often chosen, where the medication is administered through IV, and the patient must be the one opening the infusion. Doctors can assist but should not be directly involved in the act.

Every year on November 19, World COPD Day is organized to raise awareness, share knowledge and discuss ways to reduce the burden of COPD worldwide. COPD stands for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, and as per the World Health Organization (WHO), it is the fourth leading cause of death worldwide and has caused 3.5 million deaths in 2021 alone, of the 213 million people who were diagnosed with it. Projections indicate that the number of cases will increase to nearly 600 million by 2050, with a disproportionate rise expected among women and in low-and middle-income countries.

World COPD Day 2025 Theme

The theme for World COPD Day 2025 is 'Short of Breath, Think COPD'.

This year’s theme highlights a crucial issue: despite being the third leading cause of death globally, COPD is still widely overlooked and often misdiagnosed. Although it is a common, preventable, and treatable condition, many patients either remain undiagnosed or receive the wrong treatment. Early and accurate diagnosis can make a major public health difference, leading to better symptom control, improved lung function, and a higher quality of life.

Doctors stress that COPD should be suspected in anyone with persistent breathlessness, chronic cough, sputum production, recurrent lower respiratory infections, or a history of exposure to risk factors such as tobacco smoke, indoor cooking fuels, or occupational pollutants.

World COPD Day Origin

World COPD Day was launched in 2002 by the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) in partnership with the WHO. The first event marked a turning point in global respiratory health awareness, encouraging collaboration across continents.

Importance Of World COPD Day

The importance lies in its ability to draw attention to one of the top causes of deaths worldwide. Furthermore, this day promotes awareness by educating the public about COPD symptoms, persistent cough, breathlessness, and chest tightness, which may be mistaken as symptoms of normal aging.

It also encourages prevention of COPD, especially by emphasizing on quitting smoking, improving air quality, and reducing workplace exposures that contribute to COPD.

It also helps in the improvement of healthcare access, supports research and innovation by encouraging collaborations, and reduces stigma by helping patients overcome psychological barrier and seek timely help.

What Is COPD?

As per NHS UK, it is the name for a group of lung conditions that cause breathing difficulties. It includes:

• emphysema – damage to the air sacs in the lungs
• chronic bronchitis – long-term inflammation of the airways

COPD is a common condition that mainly affects middle-aged or older adults who smoke. Many people do not realize they have it.

The breathing problems tend to get gradually worse over time and can limit your normal activities, although treatment can help keep the condition under control.

Common Symptoms of COPD

• shortness of breath, particularly when you're active
• a persistent chesty cough with phlegm – some people may dismiss this as just a "smoker's cough"
• frequent chest infections
• persistent wheezing

Talking about things makes you feel better, and the Thor star Chris Hemsworth is right at it. Now 42, he is opening up about his father, Craig's diagnosis of Alzheimer's and have seen the corrosive effects on his memory and perception already. He is now making the best of it, by having it all documented on film. While he was in the middle of making National Geographic longevity series Limitless, he learned that he too carried two copies of the Alzheimer's signifying gene APOE4, one from each parent. Back then he confronted this on camera, while on shoot, and this feels like a great idea for him to do it again on A Road Trip To Remember, an hour-long documentary that will air on NatGeo.

“There was apprehension about how this would be portrayed,” Hemsworth admits. “I asked Dad what he felt, and he was actually enthusiastic. He wanted to do it.”

The Australian actor is now taking steps to stay mentally and physically fit, especially after knowing that he is predisposed for Alzheimer's disease.

Living With More Awareness Now

Chris, who shares three children with wife Elsa Pataky, says his father's struggles have made him reflect deeply on how he lives. Some hardships in life, he notes, simply can’t be avoided.

“For me, the biggest takeaway was the comfort crisis we face,” he says, as reported in Esquire. “We settle for what’s familiar, even when it’s wrong, because the unknown feels scarier. But pushing against that is where growth happens.”

His father’s reaction to the diagnosis has also taught him that even a grim prognosis can be approached with courage. “It causes fear, but it’s also a reminder not to take anything for granted,” Hemsworth says. “While he can, Dad wants to capture as many memories as possible.”

A Trip Down The Memory Lane

At the time of filming, Craig’s symptoms were sporadic—some memory lapses, moments of confusion, but overall lucidity remained. Alzheimer’s, however, does not improve with time. Knowing this, the father-son duo set out on a cross-country motorbike trip across Australia.

They retraced old memories:

• A house in Melbourne where the family lived in the early ’90s
• A Northern Territory ranch where Craig once wrangled bulls
• A specific bend in an Outback creek where the family played when the boys—Chris, Luke, and Liam—were small

Guided only by a fading photograph and half-recalled memories, they attempted to reconnect with moments that shaped their family’s early years.

The documentary also explores reminiscence therapy, guided by Dr. Suraj Samtani from the Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing at the University of Sydney. The technique uses personal memories, photos, and familiar environments to stimulate the hippocampus, the part of the brain most affected by Alzheimer’s.

“One-on-one time with Dad was special,” Chris says. “Growing up, it was always all of us together.”

For Hemsworth, the experience has made one truth clear: the importance of connection.

“It became less about the science and more about the moments together,” he says. “Whether it’s 20 years or 20 days, hold on to every moment. Connect deeply, as often as you can.”