AFAR is Managing the MetLife Foundation Awards for Medical Research

AFAR is proud to announce that it is managing the 2012 MetLife Foundation Awards for Medical Research. Winners of the awards, which are among the nation’s top honors for scientists investigating Alzheimer’s disease, will be announced in March, and will be recognized at a reception in New York on May 15. The MetLife Foundation established the MetLife Foundation Awards for Medical Research in 1986 in light of the devastating effects of Alzheimer's disease on older adults and their families. The Awards recognize scientific research achievements and the potential for future findings in Alzheimer's disease. Since the program…

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Grantee in the News: Reisa Sperling, MD, Calls for Drug Testing Earlier in Alzheimer's Disease

On November 30, The Boston Globe reported on a paper published by grantee Reisa Sperling, MD, MMSc, in Science Translational Medicine, which called for subjects with less advanced Alzheimer’s disease in drug trials. Dr. Sperling and her colleagues made the case that the failure of recent trials of drugs targeting the build-up of plaques in the brain that characterizes Alzheimer’s may be because the subjects in the trials, who had advanced Alzheimer’s, have already undergone too much damage for a benefit to be detectable. Dr. Sperling is designing a trial in which subjects with plaque…

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30th Anniversary Dinner Honors Nancy Kissinger, Mehmood Khan, and Rose Dobrof

On Tuesday, October 4, AFAR celebrated thirty years of aging research at a dinner with board members, grantees, and supporters. We were joined by three AFAR honorees, whose distinguished achievements in support of public health and the biology of aging we commend. Mrs. Nancy Kissinger was recognized for her role as co-founder of the Women & Science Initiative at the Rockefeller University. Left to right: Roger McCarter, PhD, AFAR Board President, Mrs. Judith Berkowitz, and Mrs. Nancy Kissinger. Dr. Mehmood Khan, CEO of PepsiCo’s Global Nutrition Group, was honored for his work to promote health through good nutrition worldwide. …

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New Blog Features Medical Students in Training

The Medical Student Training in Aging Research (MSTAR) Program is a summer training experience for medical students, introducing scholars to research and academic opportunities that they may not otherwise have access to in medical school. These short-term scholarships encourage budding researchers to pursue a career in geriatrics by providing mentors and hands-on experience in the lab and the clinic. What does this experience mean for the MSTAR summer scholars? Our new blog, "Diary of an MSTAR Student," highlights personal, day-in-the-life entries by students in the midst of their summer program. These diaries aim to inspire others who might be considering…

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The Stigma Around Aging And Chronic Pain

AFAR Medical Officer Richard Besdine, MD, takes on the difficult topic of pain in a new blog post on "AOL Healthy Living" section of The Huffington Post. He explains two different kinds of pain, acute and chronic, the latter being the cause of long-term disability for many Americans over 65. This poses a real issue for our aging population and, as Dr. Besdine thoughtfully explores through the article, a continuing challenge for care and treatment. Read more about the research on pain, as well as pharmacological and non-drug methods of treatment in the full article. This is the fifth post in…

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