Taking The Chance: A Patient’s View On New Alzheimer’s Treatment

Debra and Paul McAlenney with their grandson, Hudson, in the backyard of their home in Simsbury Tues., June 8, 2021. (Nicole Leonard/Connecticut Public Radio)

Debra and Paul McAlenney were at their home in Simsbury on a recent Tuesday morning watching their 5-year-old grandson, Hudson, while his parents worked.

Hudson spends a couple of days during the week with his grandparents, or as he refers to them, Nana and Bacon.

“Paul was sitting across the living room from us and Hudson said, ‘Bacon – dah dah dah dah dah,’ and Paul didn’t respond. And then he went, ‘Bacon.’ And Paul still didn’t respond,” Debra said. “And then he went, ‘Bacon!’ And I said, Paul, he’s calling you bacon and you need to just accept that and respond to it.”

The older couple laughed.

“So, he’s been Bacon ever since,” Debra said.

“It’s stuck,” Paul said, laughing.

It’s these moments, these memories, that the McAlenneys are fighting to hold on to as Paul lives with Alzheimer’s disease, which affects nearly 6 million Americans today, including about 80,000 Connecticut residents.

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