June is Alzheimer’s and Brain Awareness Month, dedicated to raising awareness about all forms of dementia.

Worldwide, dementia is the seventh leading cause of death and a major contributor to disability. The majority (61%) of the 55 million people living with dementia – a number that is expected to increase to approximately 78 million by 2030 – live in low- and middle-income countries, underscoring the urgent need to raise awareness and advocate for better care, support and prevention strategies. In the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region around 2.3 million people live with dementia, and it is the 14th leading cause of death.

Dementia is an umbrella term for several diseases that affect memory and other cognitive abilities and behaviours that interfere with a person’s ability to maintain their daily activities. It is a progressive and chronic condition in which there is disturbance of brain functions such as memory, thinking, judgment, orientation, calculation, language, learning capacity and comprehension. It is often preceded by a decline in motivation, deteriorating social behaviour and emotional control. Alzheimer's disease is a specific type of dementia characterized by progressive memory loss and cognitive decline. While the strongest known risk factor for dementia is age it is not a normal part of ageing.

Lack of awareness and understanding of dementia leads to stigmatization and barriers to diagnosis and proper care.

The impact of dementia extends far beyond the person with dementia. It affects carers, family and society at large. In 2019, the estimated economic cost of dementia was US$ 1.3 trillion, equivalent to 1.5% of global gross domestic product. In the Eastern Mediterranean Region it was US$ 31.2 billion. The global economic cost is expected to more than double by 2030, reaching US$ 2.8 trillion.