Andrea Gilbert, a 79-year-old retired attorney with Alzheimer’s disease, has agreed to donate her brain for research in the hope of aiding scientists in finding a cure. However, the Trump administration’s changes to the funding system for biomedical research have put the program at risk. This has resulted in a slowdown of research grant decisions, potentially threatening progress towards medical breakthroughs, treatments, and cures.
The University of Washington’s Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (ADRC), funded primarily by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) since 1985, is facing uncertainty as its grant funding is set to expire soon. The center’s research has been instrumental in identifying genes linked to Alzheimer’s and has collected over 4,000 brain donations for study.
Dr. Thomas Grabowski, a neurologist at Harborview Medical Center and director of the ADRC, is concerned about the future of patient care and research if federal funding is disrupted. Dr. Dirk Keene, who leads the brain bank at UW Medicine, has vowed to do whatever it takes to continue research and honor the donations of brain tissue.
The Trump administration’s actions have led to legal battles, with accusations of targeting research grants on diverse and politically sensitive subjects. The University of Washington has been heavily impacted by the grant terminations, leading to concerns about a potential brain drain of talented researchers leaving the U.S.
In response, NIH has stated its commitment to evidence-based science and restoring funding for important research projects. The fate of programs like the ADRC remains uncertain, leaving patients like Andrea Gilbert hoping that their donations will contribute to finding a cure for Alzheimer’s disease.
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