Since it was identified by German psychiatrist Alois Alzheimer, Alzheimer’s disease has meant one thing: the progressive loss of cognitive ability, ending in death.

Today, however, as knowledge of the biology of the disease has grown, there is more hope than ever that someday soon therapies will be available to delay and even, eventually, halt symptoms of Alzheimer’s.

Mark Pechenik, of the Maine Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Organization, said there is a great deal of research taking place, including two clinical trials ongoing in Maine. His organization hopes that there will be a treatment for Alzheimer’s by 2025. In the meantime, however, there are many reasons that people who believe they may be developing Alzheimer’s or a related dementia should be diagnosed as soon as possible.

Early diagnosis can help eliminate some of the isolation associated with Alzheimer’s or related dementias and help people who are in the early stages of the disease plan and prepare for the future. It also allows family members to access medical resources and other support that can greatly decrease the uncertainty and burden on the family.

Pechenik will offer an educational program at St. Andrews Village entitled “The Basics: Memory Loss, Dementia, and Alzheimer’s Disease,” Oct. 12 from 2 to 3:30 p.m.

The program will focus on the symptoms and effects of Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia, including how it affects the brain, as well as causes and risk factors and how people can find out if they have the condition.

More than 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s, including about one in nine people 65 and older. Roughly one in three seniors will die with Alzheimer’s or another dementia, according to the Alzheimer’s Association.

Among the signs of Alzheimer’s are memory loss that disrupts daily life and goes beyond the normal age-related change of forgetting names or appointments but remembering them later.

According to a number of studies, people who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s felt a sense of empowerment and relief knowing what they were up against. They could also make plans and prepare for the future and no longer felt like a passive victim, according to Pechenik.

For example, said Pechenik, research underscores the benefits of social engagement for people who have Alzheimer’s, to help lessen the isolation and anxiety that is often associated with the disease.

He said the Alzheimer’s Organization is hoping to start a social engagement committee in the Midcoast and would like to work with people in the Boothbay area on that project.

For more information about the Alzheimer’s Organization, go to www.alz.org. This presentation is free and open to the republic but please RSVP by calling 633-0920.