Dance 2 End Alzheimer’s is a Memorial-based charity focused on:

• bringing awareness to our community about the devastation that frontotemporal dementia and Alzheimer’s can inflict on a family…

• fundraising for private cutting-edge research

It is estimated that 6.7 million Americans, 65 years and older are living with Alzheimer’s.  This is larger than the population of Houston and does not include those under age 65.  It is also estimated that 16 million family members provide care for those with Alzheimer’s. Their health is at risk as statistics show that 1 out of 3 report a decline in their own health.  

Our charity was formed after a few women that lived within 2 miles of each other in the Memorial-area shared our strikingly similar experiences with FTD and Alzheimer’s.  From sharing, we realized these devastating brain diseases weren’t so rare.

Our board wanted to create a FUN way to bring awareness and funding to FTD & Alzheimer’s which is often considered taboo or carries a negative stigma.  Our charity was formed last year.  We held 3 mahjong nights to generate seed funding for us to put towards an 80’s themed concert with the Spazmatics.  This concert allowed us to generate funds 14-x times of the mahjong parties. After the concert, we donated $70,000 directly to the Nantz National Alzheimer’s Center at Houston Methodist Hospital for private research.  

We want to expand our annual concert to reach a broader audience to raise even more funds for private research at the Nantz National  Alzheimer’s Center.

What we now know is that once symptoms are outwardly apparent, the underlying disease has likely been quietly active for ~10 years.  The funds that our charity raises will be donated to the Nantz National Alzheimer’s Center. The NNAC is here in Houston and housed within the Methodist Hospital and is the only center in Texas that is in collaboration with powerhouse facilities such as the Mayo Clinic, Johns Hopkins, Columbia University, Northwestern University, the Cleveland Clinic. That means that as they all independently research and treat patients, they are sharing their findings and working as a cohesive unit to find a cure!  The Nantz Center has the largest number of patients in their study and are one of the top contributors to the data base.  They are also leading the charge with the first ever clinical trial for FTD.  What a gift to have that here in our hometown!  

Dr Masdeu, director and doctor at NNAC, expressed that they do receive some funding and grants from the National Institution of Health, however, the NIA likes to fund what is “safe.” He shared a story that several years ago the NIA would not fund research for the impacts of brain inflammation, because there had never been a link of inflammation to brain disease.  Fast forward several years, and brain inflammation is one of the only thing researchers have indeed linked to dementia.  If one can reduce brain inflammation and amyloid plaque, a patient will likely have delayed outward expression of the disease.  The research for this discovery was from private funding. Dr. Masdeu shared that genetic testing and highly reliable blood tests are in the near future. Private funding is key for innovative research.  To provide groundbreaking research, they need more freedom with the money they are provided.  

Dance 2 End Alzheimer’s is here to support ground breaking research.