Perla Castro

Alzheimer's Disease

Perla Castro joins the show to share her personal story about her mother's battle with Alzheimer's Disease and to raise awareness of this debilitating disease, especially in the Hispanic communities.

In 2004, Lesbia was officially diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s disease at age 54 after visiting a series of specialists who thought that depression was the primary reason for her memory issues. Perla pushed doctors to test her mother for Alzheimer’s disease, and Lesba was finally diagnosed.

With Lesbia now in the moderate stages of the disease, Perla has become very passionate about increasing awareness in Chicago’s Hispanic community. Perla recently partnered with Rush Medical Center to organize a monthly support group for caregivers and Alzheimer’s disease patients. She is also an avid volunteer with the Alzheimer’s Association - Chicago chapter and the Rush Memory Center.

Perla Castro was just 29-years-old when her mother, Lesbia, a native of Guatemala, began having difficulty getting through the day without struggling with the most basic of activities, like cooking meals. Much to Perla’s worry, she noticed that it was also a struggle for Lesbia to recall recent conversations with her family.

Dr. Derrick DeSilva

2 / 16 / 2010