Expert: Paula Damgaard - 10/19/2010

Question
My mother (almost 82) was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer's. She additionally has an underlying mental illness (paranoia). The mental illness has been with her for her entire adult life. My question is what should we expect her life span to be. She is moderate.

Thank you

Answer
Dear Margaret,
If I could answer that question I would be a very rich woman.  There are many factors which go into how long she would live.  Is she physically healthy? Does she have a living will that says what she wants treated and what she doesn't?  

The rule of thumb for AD patients is that they can live 2-20 years from diagnosis.  That of course is dependent on what stage she was diagnosed and how long she had shown symptoms prior to diagnosis.

Without knowing anything else about your mother except what you say here, I would guess she could live another 6-8 years, again I don't know anything else about her so that is really a HUGE guess.

Sorry I can't be more helpful.  Paula