Ellen was on a cycling holiday in September 2023 when her memory and thinking skills began to falter. Riding behind her husband on their bright green tandem bike through the rolling hills of Europe’s Iberian Peninsula, Ellen found herself struggling to follow simple navigation cues.
When she returned home to Missouri, Ellen (who asked that only her middle name be used) underwent a comprehensive evaluation, including a new blood test designed to detect proteins linked to the plaques and tangles in the brain that characterize Alzheimer’s disease. The results confirmed what her friends and family had quietly feared: Ellen was in the early stages of Alzheimer’s, a devastating form of dementia that erodes memory and affects millions of people worldwide.