Q. I have been watching the documentary, Limitless, with Chris Hemsworth on Disney+. It’s been fascinating to see what he is doing to stay young and stave off disease.
I haven’t seen all of the episodes, but read somewhere that Hemsworth found out during filming that he is 8 to 10 times more likely to get Alzheimer’s disease because he is carrying two copies of the APOE4 gene variant — from both his mother’s side and his father’s side— and that this has prompted him to take a hiatus from acting and focus on his family, health, and well-being.
Many relatives on both sides of my family had Alzheimer’s, including my mother. Although I’m doing what I can to stave off neurodegenerative diseases, similar to Hemsworth, I likely have a genetic predisposition to it. I do know I have the APOE4 gene variant on my mother’s side and my father died from Alzheimer’s before we did any genetic testing, so there is likelihood that he had the gene, as well.
Given the probability that I will have Alzheimer’s one day, I want to do something to help further Alzheimer’s research. I’m seriously considering donating my brain to researchers after I die, whether or not I ever get the disease. How does one go about doing this? Are there legal documents I can put in place to ensure that this happens? Thanks so much for your help!
