Welcome to the Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement at Cleveland Clinic
The Future of Women’s Brain Health Is Now
The Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement at Cleveland Clinic is a partnership focused on further addressing and reducing women’s risk for Alzheimer’s disease and other neurological disorders.
Its goal? To advance gender-based research, treatment, prevention and education of Alzheimer’s and other conditions involving the nervous system in women.
About the Partnership
The Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement at Cleveland Clinic (WAM at Cleveland Clinic) will explore the connection between female biology and health experiences, and how these factors affect women’s risk for developing neurological diseases.
WAM at Cleveland Clinic builds on an existing collaboration between the Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement and Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health in Las Vegas, Nevada. In 2020, the two opened the first Alzheimer’s disease prevention center for women in the country.
This formal partnership now combines educational, advocacy and fundraising experience with medical and research expertise.
WAM at Cleveland Clinic will focus on the prevention center’s long-term sustainability and growth, while expanding its mission to include all neurological diseases that affect women. In addition to her role as Founder of WAM, Maria Shriver will now serve Cleveland Clinic as a Strategic Partner for Women’s Health and Alzheimer’s disease.
“Having helped establish the fact that women are at the epicenter of Alzheimer’s disease, we are now determined to understand why women are disproportionately impacted by this – and so many other – neurological diseases.” — Maria Shriver
“One in two women will be diagnosed with a neurological disorder in her lifetime. We are proud to collaborate with Maria Shriver and WAM to expand our efforts to understanding the link between gender and all neurodegenerative conditions.” — Tom Mihaljevic, MD
Why Are Women at Increased Risk?
Not only are those assigned female at birth more likely to get Alzheimer’s disease, they’re most often the caregivers for those with the disease. Other conditions involving the nervous system also look different and happen more often in women, including:
There are many factors that can play a role — from pregnancy, childbirth and menopause to birth control medications and female hormones. More research is needed to better understand these differences — and provide hope for both prevention and treatment. Learn about ways women can help prevent Alzheimer's.
About Cleveland Clinic's Neurological Institute
Cleveland Clinic's Neurological Institute includes more than 600 medical, surgical and research specialists dedicated to the treatment of adult and pediatric patients with neurological and psychiatric disorders. The Neurological Institute recently launched the Cleveland Clinic Brain Study to help better understand what happens to the brain and body before a neurological disease is diagnosed. The 20-year landmark study will examine up to 200,000 participants for up to 20 years with the goal of learning more about the causes of disease, ultimately leading to prevention.
About the Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement
Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement (WAM) is a non-profit organization founded by award-winning journalist and author, Maria Shriver. WAM has led the way in re-framing the narrative of Alzheimer’s as a women’s issue, starting with its ground-breaking 2010 Shriver Report: A Woman’s Nation Takes on Alzheimer’s, produced with the Alzheimer’s Association. Since then, Shriver and WAM have continued to help shape the national dialogue and policy around Alzheimer’s, including leading the first ever California Task Force on Alzheimer’s Prevention, Preparedness and the Path Forward in 2021.
Donate to the Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement at Cleveland Clinic
Philanthropy is an integral part of WAM at Cleveland Clinic, with gifts supporting gender-based Alzheimer’s and neurological research, prevention and education services.
