100m 'to Become Senile' By 2020

Jun 12, 04:16 AM

Current Headlines: THE number of people with Alzheimer's will quadruple by 2020, experts warned yesterday.

Scientists are predicting a 'global epidemic' of Alzheimer's disease, with the estimated 26million people worldwide living with the condition to grow to more than 106m in the next 13 years.

Professor Ron Brookmeyer, from the Bloomberg School of Public Health in Maryland, America, said: 'We face a looming global epidemic of Alzheimer's disease as the world's population grows older.

'By 2050, one in 85 persons worldwide will have Alzheimer's disease.

However, i f we can make even modest advances in preventing Alzheimer's disease or delay its progression, we could have an enormous global public health impact,' added Prof Brookmeyer.

The biggest rise in the number of Alzheimer's cases will occur in Asia, where 48 per cent of sufferers currently live. The U.S. study, which blames an increasingly ageing population, was presented at a conference in Washington DC.

It comes as other experts unveiled a new test that can predict a person's risk of getting dementia in the next six years.

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