Goizueta Foundation $25 Million Gift Will Target Alzheimer's Early Detection

Emory’s Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (ADRC) will receive a transformational donation to support advanced research into early detection of Alzheimer’s disease. The Goizueta Foundation is committing $25 million toward research aimed at fundamentally changing the way Alzheimer’s disease is detected and treated. 

“Because Alzheimer’s disease starts decades before symptoms begin, research to determine who will develop the disease is crucial,” says Allan Levey, director of the Emory ADRC and chair of the Department of Neurology at the Emory School of Medicine. “This transformational gift will allow us to discover ways to predict Alzheimer’s disease long before the first signs appear—a key first step that will enable us to develop new treatment targets and prevent the disease for future generations. And as we learn more about risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease, we also gain a better understanding of its relationship to vascular, immune, and other key health concerns that many Americans face as they age.”

“Our father believed in making smart investments where the outcomes may be uncertain but the rewards could be great,” said Olga Goizueta Rawls, the foundation’s chair and CEO. “It’s likely that everyone in the Atlanta community and beyond knows someone who has been affected by some form of dementia, such as Alzheimer’s. We believe that strengthening Emory’s ADRC will help generate the much-needed support for innovative research for all neuro-related diseases.”

Emory’s ADRC is one of just thirteen comprehensive research centers supported by the National Institutes of Health and the only such entity in the Southeast. “The goal of each of these centers is to bring together scientists from different disciplines to work collaboratively on research into Alzheimer’s disease and related conditions,” says Levey.

The Alzheimer’s Association estimates that, in 2014, the cost of providing care for Alzheimer’s patients in the US was projected at $214 billion per year including $150 billion in costs to Medicare and Medicaid. If present trends continue, this cost is projected to grow to $1.2 trillion per year (in 2014 dollars) by 2050.