DENVER — For the Davis family, moments looking through old photo albums not only provide a window into the past but also a future that couldn't be.
"We were just loving life. It was really, really good, and this has really clipped my wings" Paula Davis said. "It's been difficult, life changing."
The Davis family used to love traveling the world. But Jim Davis has been living with Alzheimer’s Disease for nearly 10 years, which has progressively gotten worse over time.
"In the last two years, it has really become predominantly worse. In the last year, it has gotten really bad to where he has no short-term memory, none. He doesn't remember me sometimes," said Paula Davis, Jim Davis' wife.
Both Jim Davis’ wife and daughter, Carrie Davis, now care for him daily.
"She’s not my daughter anymore. She's my partner, and I really look at it like that," Paula Davis said.
Recently, the Davis family decided to take part in a new clinical trial of an investigational drug, ATH-1017, that could improve brain activity, repair brain connections and rescue brain cells.
"We don't know if it'll even help him, but it's something that I feel really good about and that, hopefully, it might help me, but it will definitely help someone," said Carrie Davis.
Two of Jim Davis' family members also lived with Alzheimer’s. For the Davis family, taking part in this study is a way of fighting back and searching for a cure, even if it doesn’t get there in time for Jim Davis.
"It's not going to come for Jim. I know that it's not going to make him well, but it's going to help other people, and it's something that we can do. I mean, it's a small sacrifice for the big picture," Paula Davis said.
Although it may feel they’re fighting the inevitable, this family isn’t ready to give up.
"We're still in it together, our roles just changed," said Paula Davis. "All of a sudden, I’m the captain of the team now,"
