Texas can revolutionize dementia care. UT is ready to help.

The following op-ed by UT System Chancellor James B. Milliken was published in the Houston Chronicle.

Imagine a Texas where Alzheimer’s disease can be treated like diabetes. It might look like a series of preventative shots a person gets in their 40s, or a pill they take in their 60s to mitigate and control symptoms, just like one might with a host of conditions. This is the future as envisioned by University of Texas researchers like Dr. Marc Diamond at UT Southwestern, whose work is dedicated to ending what he calls the “neurological nightmare” of dementia.

Thanks to a new legislative effort at the Texas State Capitol, we may be closer to ending this nightmare than ever before.   

Senate Bill 5 — sponsored by state Sen. Joan Huffman — has been designated a legislative priority by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. A companion House bill authored by state Rep. Tom Craddick — has 119 co-sponsors. The bills would give Texans the chance to vote on the creation of a $3 billion fund to support the Dementia Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (DPRIT.)

If passed, DPRIT would revolutionize Alzheimer’s care and research in Texas. As lawmakers continue to deliberate this proposal, the University of Texas stands ready to do its part. We are already deeply immersed in leading research and clinical efforts in the battle against dementia, and we’re ready to do more.

Nearly 7 million Americans aged over 65 are currently living with Alzheimer’s. That number is expected to double by the 2060s. Here in the Lone Star State, nearly half a million Texans live with Alzheimer’s, and a million more provide them with unpaid care, often at great personal cost. Many caregivers report symptoms of depression. The economic costs associated with dementia are sky high. Nationally we spend an estimated $360 billion per year on dementia care — 120 times the cost of DPRIT over the next decade.

The promise of DPRIT is that the discoveries, innovations and technologies it will catalyze can revolutionize the lives of those who live with Alzheimer’s and those who care for them. But how do we know DPRIT can deliver? Thankfully, the concept has been tried and tested in Texas over the last decade.

In 2007, Texans voted to establish the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT). Since then, the state has invested over $3 billion dollars in cancer prevention and research. The impact has been incredible. Over 300 researchers and their labs have relocated to Texas, more than 80 facilities are supported financially and over $8 billion in outside funds (mostly federal) have followed. In fact, CPRIT has been so successful, voters chose in 2019 to invest another $3 billion in the initiative.

At UT, CPRIT funds have recruited scholars from all over the world to our campuses across the state. From imaging to immuno-oncology, new therapies are being conceived, trialed and rolled out. Whole new research and care hubs, such as the Simmons Cancer Center (with 277 faculty members) at UT Southwestern, have been launched. MD Anderson — ranked No. 1 in the nation for cancer care by U.S. News and World Report — has seen 20 separate projects supported by CPRIT this year alone, each of them solely focused on realizing scientific breakthroughs that can advance care and prevention.

Because dementia care is already a priority in the UT System, DPRIT promises to deliver the same level of investment, impact and collaboration that we’ve seen with CPRIT.

Take for example, UT Austin’s Mulva Clinic for the Neurosciences, where clinicians have developed the Caregiver Outcomes of Psychotherapy Evaluation (COPE) measure designed to provide individualized mental health and support services for family caregivers. Or the Biggs Institute for Alzheimer's & Neurodegenerative Diseases at UT Health San Antonio, where researchers are pioneering retinal scans to detect Alzheimer’s early; in the future, a trip to the eye doctor could be pivotal to the detection and preemption of dementia symptoms. There are so many other examples across UT institutions — with DPRIT, we could turbo-charge these efforts.

On the first Tuesday of each month, a support group for caregivers of family members with Alzheimer’s meets at the Dementia, Geriatric & Brain Health Clinic at the UT Education and Research Center at Laredo. When I think of the fight against dementia, I think of those caregivers. Cancer research and care undoubtedly saves lives. DPRIT-funded research and care has the potential to preserve life to the fullest for millions of Texans impacted by Alzheimer’s.

I’m grateful to live and work in a state where our lawmakers are dedicated to fighting cruel diseases. Together, we’ve been working to prevent, treat and cure cancer. Now, let’s do the same to defeat dementia.