Game of Thrones star joins fight against dementia

Game of Thrones actress Lena Headey is the latest celebrity to join the fight against dementia.

Known as Cersei Lannister in the award-winning HBO series, Lena has done a voice over for an advert by the charity Alzheimer’s Research UK.

Launching ahead of World Alzheimer’s Day (21 September), the film challenges the hopelessness that still exists around dementia – the UK’s leading cause of death – and calls on the public to help make breakthroughs in research possible.

Lena says in the film: “We come into this world with one instinct – survive – and it never leaves us, whatever the challenge.”

Dementia has become the UK’s leading cause of death. Despite this, one in five adults in the UK mistakenly believes that dementia is as an inevitable part of getting older and only half agree that it is a cause of death.

Hilary Evans, chief executive of Alzheimer's Research UK, said: “Our thought-provoking film represents the innate human instinct that compels us to survive and to help others survive. As a society, we have already overcome so many challenges, including developing life-changing treatments for some of the world’s deadliest diseases.

“Alzheimer’s and other dementias are now one of society’s biggest medical challenges but overcoming them isn’t impossible. In the same way medical research has overcome other diseases in the past, we can make the same breakthroughs for people affected by dementia and their families.”

The launch comes as the charity pledges to commit a landmark £250m to dementia research by 2025.

In the coming weeks, the charity will also set out an action plan for government to address the inequality of funding for dementia research and speed up the search for treatments.

Dr Evans added: “If we’re to make truly life-changing breakthroughs possible for people with dementia, we must see society as a whole step up and drive change, from the public sharing a message of hope and supporting research, to government and policymakers creating an environment where pioneering science can thrive.”

Alzheimer’s is the leading cause of dementia, and it’s a disease that no-one has yet survived. To find out more, visit www.alzheimersresearchuk.org/makepossible