Cure Alzheimer’s Fund had a surge of research proposals during the last quarter of 2011 and very early in the first quarter of 2012.  Prior to November 2011, Cure Alzheimer’s Fund had received and supported 14 proposals for a total value of $1,852,500. Then in the last few weeks of the year and the first week of the next year, we reviewed five more and expect two or three more before the end of January for a total value approximating another $1.5 million.

 

At the same time, Cure Alzheimer’s Fund finished 2011 with another record year in fundraising, nearing a 10 percent increase over 2010, bringing us to about $4.4 million raised in 2011.

 

This conjunction of events is not a coincidence. The increase in high-quality proposals comes as a) CAF-supported researchers are leading the way in forging consensus around the causes of the disease; (b) results of earlier CAF-supported research is driving three compounds that are nearing the drug development stage; and (c) funding for research is increasingly tight from other sources. All three of these developments create an increase in demand for the kind of fast, focused funding of high-quality, therapy-oriented research that CAF provides.

 

The increase in funding comes as our donors recognize the need to accelerate momentum toward a cure and know that the “limiting factor” now is money.  Most researchers agree the Alzheimer’s research field is on the right track to identify the root causes of the disease. That will enable the development of more effective ways to identify people at risk even before they are symptomatic and to intervene much earlier as well as through other drugs to provide relief to people already suffering from the disease.

 

We are not there yet, and there are tough battles yet to be won, but we are definitely on the right track and making good progress. We are deeply grateful to our donors–those who have been with us since the beginning, those new to CAF, major donors (of which we have added several in 2011!) and smaller, sustaining donors whose dollars and faith in Cure Alzheimer’s Fund keep us moving forward. They all know this battle can be won, but they also know that the longer it takes, the more families will be devastated by Alzheimer’s. We can help to end it more quickly by applying more resources to the right research.

 

Thank you to those of you who have provided this momentum, and welcome to those of you who want to help now to keep it going!