Paying for elderly homes is a costly endeavour for both families and society in general, and it is made even more so by the complication of degenerate diseases like alzheimer’s disease. This and other degenerate diseases represent a significant cost to society in terms of both care and on-going treatment, and successfully curing those conditions will save money and families from a tremendous ordeal.

Research conducted by the Alzheimer’s society showed that the total cost of the disease to the UK economy is around £26 billion every year. This is mostly in the form of unpaid care given by family members, but also the government assistance that is provided to unsupported sufferers of the illness, and the money families need to pay for care homes.

While there are treatments for the illness, these mainly are only capable of slowing down the progression but are incapable of reversing or even stopping the degradation. It is a significant area of investment for the medical industry though, so it will likely be dealt with at some point over the next 50 years.