Imagine greeting your grandmother and being met with a blank stare. Think about how you would feel seeing your father forget how to drive or dress. Imagine your own mother crying for her long-dead parents and siblings. Try to imagine the look on a loved one's face when you tell them they can no longer live at home alone. Now put yourself in their shoes – slowly losing your freedom, your memory and your very identity. Welcome to the world of Alzheimer's disease. This is the reality that nearly fifteen million caregivers and more than five million patients have to face every day. We need to raise awareness about Alzheimer's disease and the people it affects. Alzheimer's disease was discovered in 1906 by the German doctor Alois Alzheimer. While studying the brain biopsy of a fifty-five-year-old woman suffering from a severe form of dementia, he noticed aberrations in the structure of her brain. The brain appeared shrunken, with enlarged fissures in the gray matter. More than a century later, we now know that Alzheimer's disease is caused by a mixture of chemical and cellular abnormalities in the brain and the breakdown of brain cells. Most defects occur in the cerebral cortex, which is the outer gray matter of the brain and the center of most human brain functions such as memory, language and thinking. About ten percent of the nerves in the cerebral cortex die as the disease progresses, leading to the loss of previously created synapses (connections between nerve cells). Neurofibrillary tangles, which are abnormally twisted and knotted strands in nerve cells in the cerebral cortex, also contribute to cognitive impairment. Nerve cells in the brain lose the ability to create vitality... middle of paper ... a disorder that plays a huge role in the United States and needs to be recognized. Raising public awareness of Alzheimer's disease will spur increased research, more support for those directly affected, the search for financial solutions, and an overall increase in understanding and compassion. By educating people about Alzheimer's disease and its consequences, we can truly begin to combat this devastating disease. Works Cited Alzheimer’s Association. Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures 2011. Annual Report, Washington: Alzheimer's Association, 2011, August, Paul Nordstrom. Brain function. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1988. Check, William A. Alzheimer's Disease. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1989. Harmon, Dan. The blurred life; Alzheimer's disease and associated disorders. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishers, 1999.