Daniel Gibbs - A Tattoo on my Brain

A Tattoo on My Brain

Dr. Daniel Gibbs is one of 50 million people worldwide with an Alzheimers disease diagnosis. Unlike most patients with Alzheimers, however, Dr. Gibbs worked as a neurologist for twenty-five years, caring for patients with the very disease now affecting him. Also unusual is that Dr. Gibbs had begun to suspect he had Alzheimers several years before any official diagnosis could be made. Forewarned by genetic testing showing he carried alleles that increased the risk of developing the disease, he noticed symptoms of mild cognitive impairment long before any tests would have alerted him. In this highly personal account, Dr. Gibbs documents the effect his diagnosis has had on his life and explains his advocacy for improving early recognition of Alzheimers. Weaving clinical knowledge from decades caring for dementia patients with his personal experience of the disease, this is an optimistic tale of one mans journey with early-stage Alzheimers disease.

Daniel Gibbs is a retired neurologist in Portland, Oregon, with early-stage Alzheimers disease. Having spent twenty-five years caring for patients, many with dementia themselves, he is now an active advocate for the early recognition and management of Alzheimers.

Teresa H. Barker is a journalist and nonfiction cowriter whose collaborations include books by author experts in strong narrative treatments of subjects including medical science, creative aging, child and adult development, parenting, and life in the digital age.

As a neurologist with early-stage Alzheimer's, Dr. Daniel Gibbs offers a uniquely insightful, candid, and compassionate view from both seats. A Tattoo on my Brain is essential reading for any family living with an Alzheimer's diagnosis.

When a neurologist experiences a so-called neurodegenerative condition such as Alzheimers or Parkinson disease they are often equipped uniquely to provide insight into a condition that non-medically qualified patients may lack. In this unique work, A Tattoo on my Brain , Dr. Gibbs tracks in meticulous detail the earliest symptoms of what was diagnosed subsequently as Alzheimers disease. Interestingly, the apparent prodromal symptom was smell impairment appearing some 10 years before diagnosis of AD although that could have related in part to a coincidental pituitary adenoma. Either way, smell loss is now a well-recognised feature of AD and in Dr. Gibbs case, the insidious decline of smell appreciation is evaluated by serial measurement on the University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test. The possibility of late onset AD did not come as a complete surprise, given that he was a homozygous carrier for the APOE-4 allele. Subsequent impairment of declarative memory with abnormalities on amyloid PET imaging put the diagnosis beyond reasonable doubt. Dr. Gibbs comments on the role of cholinesterase and glutamate antagonists and describes his unfortunate experience with aducanumab, the monoclonal antibody against amyloid. Finally, the role of lifestyle and dietary changes are discussed as a means to retard the progress of the disease. This work will have major appeal to lay people, especially those caring for an affected family member but also to neurologists, neuropsychologists and those involved in trials of new medications.

Dr. Gibbs provides a first-hand account of his journey as a neurologist living with early-stage Alzheimers that is thoughtful, educational, humorous and poignant. I highly recommend this book to patients and families living with Alzheimers, and to doctors and scientists dedicated to studying the disease and developing new therapies.

A Tattoo on my Brain describes Dr. Daniel Gibbs amazing journey from neurologist to patient living with Alzheimers disease. Clues crop up along the way, a genetic marker for Alzheimers, strange odors and memory glitches that tipped him off that his brain was starting to malfunction. He underwent advanced brain scans that showed the buildup of amyloid plaques and he joined a clinical trial to remove them. He vividly describes the side effects that briefly turned his world upside down. But Dr. Gibbs emerges from this odyssey in good shape, with wisdom and reflection urging readers to learn about their risk for Alzheimers disease and take steps to prevent it.

A Tattoo on My Brain

A Neurologists Personal Battle against Alzheimers Disease

Daniel Gibbs,

MD, PhD

With Teresa H. Barker

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Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9781108838931

DOI: 10.1017/9781108974677

Daniel Gibbs 2021

This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press.

First published 2021

Printed in the United Kingdom by TJ Books Limited, Padstow Cornwall

A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Gibbs, Daniel, author. | Barker, Teresa, author.

Title: A tattoo on my brain : aneurologists personal battle against Alzheimers disease / Daniel Gibbs, Teresa H Barker.

Description: Cambridge ; New York, NY : Cambridge University Press, 2021. | Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2020050627 | ISBN 9781108838931 (hardback) | ISBN 9781108974677 (ebook)

Subjects: MESH: Gibbs, Daniel. | Alzheimer Disease | Neurologists | Personal Narrative