Opinion

Dementia stole my grandmother from us. I am fighting to give families more time

My grandmother lived with dementia for nearly a decade before passing away in October 2016

By Michelle Branham Fox News

Published September 6, 2026 7:50am EDT | Updated September 6, 2026 8:00am EDT

Comments Facebook Twitter Threads Flipboard Print Email Add Fox News on Google

close

Video

Alzheimer's Association warns policy hurdles are 'hamstringing' access to new treatments

Alzheimer's Association VP Rachel Conant joins 'Fox News Live' to discuss policy hurdles blocking access to breakthrough Alzheimer's treatments.

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

My big, Italian family revolved around my grandmother: a feisty daughter of immigrants fighting for the American dream in Queens, New York. No one was a stranger in her home; she cooked, laughed, and welcomed everyone. My mother joked that the boys she brought home ended up falling in love with my grandmother, instead. Always bold and unapologetic, Grandma would take us to the movie theater and shout commentary over the dialogue as we muffled our embarrassed laughter.

Then, something changed. In 2006, my once-lively grandmother was diagnosed with vascular dementia. It was devastating news, but it also finally answered questions we'd been asking for years. The woman who had always been the center of our family was beginning to shrink inward. My mother, her caregiver, did everything she could to preserve Grandma's joyful spirit, but she grew quiet and withdrawn, overwhelmed by the very gatherings she'd once loved. My grandmother lived with dementia for nearly a decade before passing away in October 2016.

Watching her decline drew me into the fight against Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia........

© Fox News