From the age of 25, when her “loving and gregarious” mother Sylvia was diagnosed with a rare form of inherited early-onset Alzheimer’s at the age of 53, Jo Harrigan has been living with what she describes as a “death sentence”.
The first signs of dementia can be easily missed. After all, changes can be subtle, says Julie Holder, a community hospitals mental health liaison nurse who has been working with dementia patients for 20 years. She gives an example of a retired patient who may have always worn a shirt and a tie but now can’t work out how to put it on.
Roaring 1,000 horsepower engines, squealing tyres and the intoxicating reek of exhaust fumes: the world of Formula 1 sounds a far cry from the sterile environment of a medical research laboratory. But Cambridge University scientist Dr Maura Malpetti says the two have more in common than you might think.