Alzheimer’s Research UK: One in two Brits will either develop dementia, care for someone with the condition, or both, says charity

• New analysis highlights urgent need to deliver life-changing treatments for people affected by dementia.
• Alzheimer’s Research UK has set out ambitious new 10-year plan to boost the search for a cure.
• Golden Globe-winning actor, Brian Cox, has called for research efforts to be accelerated having seen first-hand the devastation of dementia.

If nothing changes, one in two of us will be directly affected by dementia – either by caring for someone with the condition, developing it ourselves, or both. That’s according to new data released by Alzheimer’s Research UK on Wednesday 24 May.

In response to this new figure, the UK’s leading dementia research charity has vowed to put a stop to the condition by spearheading the search for a cure, with Succession-star Brian Cox standing with them.

The latest analysis, commissioned by the charity and carried out by the Office of Health Economics, an independent research organisation, set out to calculate the chances that someone would either develop dementia or become an informal carer – someone who provides unpaid care to a loved one with the condition – at some point in their life (known as ‘lifetime risk’).

The analysis took into account a range of factors, such as population mortality rates, the prevalence of different dementia risk genes in the UK population, and how members of the same family can become carers*.

Its findings show that:

• 55% of people in the UK will care for someone with dementia, develop it themselves, or both.
• Over 1.2 million people in the UK will have dementia by 2040 – 30% more than the number of people living with the condition today.

With age the biggest risk factor for the condition, the number of people affected by dementia is expected to rise as the population ages and life expectancy increases. And with no treatments yet available in the UK that can stop or slow Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of dementia, tragically, not one of them will survive their diagnosis.

Dementia is already the leading killer in the UK, claiming the lives of nearly 66,000 people in England and Wales alone last year, according to recent data from the Office of National Statistics.

But dementia doesn’t only impact the individual living with the condition. There are 700,000 people across the UK today that provide selfless, unpaid care to support their loved one’s increasing needs. As a result, these individuals are twice as likely to experience psychological distress and poor health compared to non-carers.

Louise Sherwani knows only too well the impact dementia can have on a family. Her husband Imran Sherwani, a former GB men’s hockey player and Olympic Gold medallist, is living with young-onset Alzheimer’s disease.

She said: “Imran achieved so much in life, and I know he would have gone on to do so much more, had he not developed Alzheimer’s. It’s been devastating to see how this disease has taken hold of Imran and the way it’s impacted our whole family. It’s changed all our lives and I wish there was something we could have done to stop it. While I know there will be no cure for Imran, I hope that other families will be saved from this devastating disease. That’s why I’m supporting Alzheimer’s Research UK’s efforts to find a cure.”

To overcome the enormous challenge of dementia, the charity has transformed to become bolder and more determined than ever before. Today Alzheimer’s Research UK unveiled a bold new 10-year plan, to accelerate progress towards a cure, together with a new brand and identity, and a new flagship fundraising event, centred around the aspirational strapline – For A Cure. Scottish actor Brian Cox, famously known for his role as Logan Roy in HBO’s Succession, has also fronted a new film from the charity.

Actor Brian Cox said: “I saw first-hand the destruction dementia causes, when it robbed me of my brother and my brother-in-law. I was forced to watch as their lives ended in one of the worst possible ways, knowing nothing could be done to save them. No family should ever have to go through this, but as the new figures today have revealed, many more will unless things drastically change. We all have a part to play in conquering the enormous challenge of dementia, and we must speed up research efforts to save people from the heartbreak of this condition sooner. That’s why I’m standing with Alzheimer’s Research UK and backing the charity’s search for a cure.”

Since the charity’s inception in 1992, scientists funded by Alzheimer’s Research UK have made more than 4,500 discoveries in dementia research, including breakthroughs that have paved the way for experimental therapies in clinical trials today. And in recent months, new drugs, lecanemab and donanemab, have marked the dawn of a new era of treatments proven to slow the course of Alzheimer’s disease.

Hilary Evans, Chief Executive of Alzheimer’s Research UK, said: “The new figure we’ve released today highlights that if nothing changes, one in two of us will be directly affected by dementia, either by caring for a loved one or developing the condition ourselves. This is the frightening reality we face, and we will not be able to escape the ever-growing threat of dementia unless we take action now. That’s why at Alzheimer’s Research UK, we have vowed to lead the search for a cure. We know this is a huge ambition, but it’s what people affected by dementia deserve, so we will strive for nothing less.

“Breakthroughs like the Alzheimer’s drugs lecanemab and donanemab have put us on the path for a cure, but this is only just the start. We need to deliver life-changing treatments for people with every form of dementia, revolutionise how it’s diagnosed, and find ways to prevent it altogether. But we cannot do this alone. That’s why we’re urging people to stand with us and join our search for cure.”

The charity’s new 10-year plan – Alzheimer’s Research UK: Towards A Cure – outlines the change it wants to see for people affected by dementia by 2033. The strategy focuses on three key priority areas – treatment, diagnosis and prevention – and highlights the actions the charity will take to make radical improvements in each of these areas.

Prof Jonathan Schott, Alzheimer’s Research UK’s Chief Medical Officer, said: “As a clinician seeing patients in the NHS, I am all too aware of the devastating effects that dementia has on individuals and their families. We are living in an age of patient empowerment and knowledge, and increasingly people want to know what they can do to reduce their risk of dementia. And, if they do develop symptoms, they want and deserve an early and accurate diagnosis. But unfortunately, while there is much that we can do to support people now, we are desperately in need of new treatments that are proven to slow or stop dementia in its tracks.

“There are more than 140 dementia drugs in various stages of clinical development right now, and the exciting results of the lecanemab and donanemab trials represent the beginning of what we hope will be a steady stream of successes in years to come. For the first time in decades, it feels like there is real hope. And treatments that can really impact on the diseases like Alzheimer’s, that cause dementia, are now in sight.”

To find out how to do your bit for a cure, visit and donate at www.alzheimersresearchuk.org.