When people think about Alzheimer's disease and other dementias, late-life memory loss is often the first symptom that comes to mind. Yet many individuals experience earlier changes that can be more subtle and less recognized. Changes in decision-making, financial management, planning, behavior, or personality, for example, are often dismissed as stress, menopause, depression, or normal aging. Given that midlife is a time when we routinely screen for cancers, heart disease, and other chronic conditions, adding a cognitive check-in could help reveal more subtle changes in brain health before symptoms become severe. This panel will explore why brain health should, like other conditions, prioritize early detection to improve outcomes, highlighting emerging approaches to cognitive assessment, biomarker testing, and risk identification. Panelists will discuss how earlier recognition and screening can empower individuals to access treatments, adopt risk-reducing lifestyle changes, participate in research, and plan for the future.
