Unfortunately, one in nine people in the United States who are 65 or older are diagnosed with Alzheimer's, according to the Alzheimer's Association. And based on their 2024 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figuresreport, about 6.9 million Americans are currently living with the disease -- including beloved celebrities and public figures. In honor of Alzheimer's Awareness month, keep reading to learn the stories of famous people with Alzheimer's (both past and present), plus important symptoms to watch for that could signal memory trouble.
What is Alzheimer's disease?
"Alzheimer's disease is a neurological condition that impacts our memory," says Laura Korin, MD, MPH, medical director at One Medical and chief women's health officer at Seek. If the disease develops, your brain cells slowly degenerate and lose connection over time, which can cause you to lose both short and long-term memories.
"Alzheimer's falls in the dementia bucket, which is a broad term for degenerative brain conditions that impact memory loss and other cognitive functions," she adds. The disease can also impact critical thinking skills, which makes it difficult to do everyday tasks as it progresses.
Symptoms of Alzheimer's disease
Some of the biggest Alzheimer's disease symptoms to look out for include memory loss and trouble communicating. "Trouble communicating means repeating words, telling stories that are hard to follow and forgetting what you were talking about," explains Dr. Korin. She notes that these things happen to all of us occasionally, so occasional memory blips aren't reason to panic. But if they start becoming more frequent, you should schedule an appointment with your doctor.
Dr. Korin says other common symptoms of the condition include increased anger or irritability, changes in behavior, paranoia or an increased desire to be alone.
Famous people with Alzheimer's
While Alzheimer's disease is more common in older adults, it can sometimes manifest earlier in life (known as early onset Alzheimer's disease). Over the years, many famous people -- including actors, musicians and even former U.S. presidents -- have raised awareness for Alzheimer's by bravely sharing their own experiences with the disease. Here, famous people who lived with or are living with Alzheimer's and how they dealt with the condition:
Ronald Reagan
The 40th president of the U.S., Ronald Reagan, publicly announced his Alzheimer's diagnosis in a letter in November of 1994. "My Fellow Americans, I have recently been told that I am one of the millions of Americans who will be afflicted with Alzheimer's Disease," Reagan wrote.
He was 83 years old and had regular physical exams where he was deemed healthy. But in the year leading up to his diagnosis, physicians at Mayo Clinic "began to notice from President Reagan's test results symptoms indicating the possibility of early-stage Alzheimer's Disease," they shared in a written explanation of his condition. Reagan lived with the condition for a decade before passing away in 2004 at 93 years old from pneumonia and Alzheimer's complications.
Joanne Woodward
With a career spanning decades, Oscar-winning actress Joanne Woodward has established herself as Hollywood royalty. The star was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease at age 77 in 2007, just days before her husband, Paul Newman, was diagnosed with terminal cancer. She's kept a low profile over the years, so it's unclear when her symptoms first appeared.
Woodward and Newman's love story was featured in the 2022 documentary The Last Movie Stars The actress is currently living with her family in Connecticut. In April 2023, a source told Ok! Magazine: "At this point, the best that can be done for Joanne is to keep her comfortable while waiting for the inevitable. It's a tribute to her courage and determination [that] she has lived with this debilitating disease as long as she has."
His wife, Emma Heming Willis, shared that her husband's earliest sign of dementia was a stutter, though they didn't realize it was a symptom of dementia until later on. Many of the symptoms associated with FTD are issues with speech, language and behavioral shifts as opposed to the more traditional dementia symptoms of memory loss.
Glen Campbell
Country singer, songwriter and musician Glen Campbell was diagnosed with Alzheimer's when he was 75 years old. While he wasn't officially diagnosed until 2011, Campbell started suffering from memory loss in 2009. He later developed aphasia (which impacts speech) and was only able to speak in short sentences.
Throughout his battle with the disease, Campbell also dealt with behavioral changes where he became combative and displayed uncharacteristic behavior at home, according to his widow, Kimberly Woolen. The singer wrote and performed to the best of his ability, living with Alzheimer's until he passed away in 2017.
Robin Williams
While beloved actor Robin Williams did not have Alzheimer's disease, his death in 2014 was linked to a condition that shares many similarities with Alzheimer's: Lewy body dementia (LBD). His widow, Susan Schneider Williams, shared his diagnosis after he passed. Some of his symptoms included mood swings, anxiety, trouble walking, hallucinations, paranoia, or struggling to feel like himself.
For Williams, depression was also a major symptom of his LBD. "Depression is an interesting one because it can be a symptom of Alzheimer's, but it can also increase our likelihood of developing the disease later in life," explains Dr. Korin. "This is because it can trigger brain inflammation and vitamin and mineral deficiencies that have been closely connected to neurological conditions in research."