THE LIBBI THOMAS FOUNDATION ADVANCEs SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY LINKING DOWN SYNDROME AND ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE

Our foundation Partners with Industry Pioneers from Harvard University & Massachusetts General Hospital to Advance Research Study

The Libbi Thomas Foundation is proud to launch to advance scientific research associated with Down syndrome and its links to early-onset Alzheimer's disease in partnership with leading Massachusetts General Hospital researchers. Advances in function, well-being and life span for people with Down syndrome have revealed an additional health risk: as they age, individuals have a greater risk of developing a type of dementia that's either the same as, or very similar to Alzheimer's disease.

"Libbi lived a vibrant life beyond measure in her sixty years; an age once thought impossible for a baby born with Down syndrome to achieve," shared Patti Harper, Libbi’s sister and Founder of the Libbi Thomas Foundation. "Towards the end of her life, Libbi was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, and it was only then that we learned of the common occurrence of this diagnosis. To honor her legacy, we have created the Libbi Thomas Foundation to advance research and discovery linking Down syndrome and Alzheimer's to protect future generations."

To advance research, the Libbi Thomas Foundation has partnered with two veteran researchers and pioneers in their field from Harvard University and Massachusetts General Hospital – Florence Lai, MD, the lead Massachusetts researcher in a multi-center, multi-year study funded by the National Institutes of Health, and Herminia Diana Rosas, M.D.

"Alzheimer dementia is now diagnosed in approximately 30% of those born with Down syndrome who reach age 50, and up to two-thirds of those who are in their 60s," shared Florence Lai, MD. "We are excited to partner with The Libbi Thomas Foundation to secure critical funds needed to expedite and advance this essential research."

According to the Alzheimer's Association, autopsy studies show that by age 40, the brains of almost all individuals with Down syndrome have significant levels of beta-amyloid plaques and tau tangles, abnormal protein deposits considered hallmarks of Alzheimer's. Despite the presence of these brain changes, not everyone with Down syndrome develops dementia symptoms. One of the many question's researchers hope to answer about Down syndrome is why some develop dementia symptoms, and others don't, and why some develop the disease in their early 40s and others not until their late 60s.  Researchers are working to answer a similar key question about those who don't have Down syndrome: Why do some people with brain changes characteristic of Alzheimer's never show symptoms of the disease?

"The Libbi Thomas Foundation aims to provide a better future for people with Down syndrome," continued Harper. "The good news is that people with Down syndrome are living longer lives, but the bad news is that they are more prone to develop dementia than the rest of the population. How can we help reverse that trend and ensure they have not only more years, but that those years are as full as the rest of their beautiful lives?"

The Libbi Thomas Foundation's ultimate goal is to advance research to better understand these connections to foster treatments that will make Alzheimer's disease preventable or at most a rarity in those with Down syndrome as they age.

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