Alzheimer’s disease is one of humanity’s most formidable foes, affecting 10% of people over age 65 and killing more people each year than breast cancer and prostate cancer combined. Its effects on patients’ cognition and personalities are uniquely heartbreaking. And for decades, Alzheimer’s remained hard to predict or diagnose, and impossible to treat.

But this stalemate may finally be coming to an end. Just two years ago, the FDA approved the first-ever drugs that actually forestall symptoms like memory loss. Now, discoveries in gene editing, brain imaging, blood testing and epidemiology are driving progress toward better and safer treatments, and even prevention.

“Over the last five or so years, we’ve hit an inflection point. We’re starting to get traction,” says Martin Kampmann, professor of biochemistry and biophysics who studies the molecular aspects of dementia at UC San Francisco.

Read about what’s next for Alzheimer’s research and patients

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