‘Not the end of life’: She’s battling early-onset dementia with new tools

ATLANTA, Ga. (InvestigateTV) - Controlling your movements, shaping your personality, storing your memory. The brain is powerful, but as we age those calls don’t communicate the way they used to.When those changes happen before the age of 65 and a person can’t live or work independently, it can lead doctors to diagnose early-onset dementia.Andrea Lucas keeps a pill box in her home, surrounded by pictures and memorabilia celebrating her father, Bill Lucas, who was the first Black general manager for the Atlanta Braves.The 61-year-old never needed medicine before and said she hates pills. But now, Lucas manages multiple medications after being diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment, or early-onset dementia.In Georgia, Lucas is one of at least 385,000 people reported to have a form of cognitive impairment, according to Georgia Memory Net.The first signs came three years ago. She would miss little things, or someone would tell her she kept repeating herself. Minor issues grew into major p