Emmie still happy says family at expert dementia discussion
Fan favourite Emmie Silbery’s family has given an update on her condition as dementia experts say two new drugs are set to be “game-changers”.
Victoria
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The family of Gogglebox Australia fan favourite Emmie Silbery say she is happy in aged care and even has a few “boyfriends”.
Granddaughter Isabelle (Izzy) Silbery, who also appears on the popular reality TV show with her mum Kerry, told an audience in Melbourne on Wednesday that her much-loved nonagenarian Nan still has a great sense of humour.
The family revealed in February 2023 that Emmie, 95, would not be returning to the show after she was diagnosed with mild dementia.
She now lives in an aged care home in Melbourne.
Izzy, who recently gave birth to daughter Ruby, shared the family’s experience with dementia as part of a panel discussion arranged by The Florey. The focus was on navigating the challenges and opportunities of amyloid therapies to treat the disease.
An estimated 400,000 Australians live with dementia, predicted to cost in excess of $18.7 billion by next year.
The federal Minister for Health and Aged Care Mark Butler gave the opening address, quipping the Silberys were his favourite Gogglebox family.
Izzy said the family started to notice small changes in Emmie before her diagnosis.
“She wasn’t following conversations, forgetting to eat dinner and forgetting to take her medications. It was hard,” Izzy said.
“When we got the diagnosis of mild dementia she said, ‘that’s all right, I am perfectly fine. Nothing wrong with me’ and we told her we needed to keep her safe, and she would be safer in care.
“We are so thankful with the way she is; she is so happy-go-lucky.”
Izzy said the family was passionate about being honest about dementia.
The experts on Wednesday’s panel included Professors Chris Rowe, neurologist and director of the Australian Dementia Network, Scott Ayton, the leader of the NHRMC Centre of Research Excellence in Enhanced Dementia Diagnosis, researcher Amy Brodtmann, Royal Melbourne Hospital neurologist Nawaf Yassi and Nicola Lautenschlager, the director of the University of Melbourne’s Academic Unit for Psychiatry of Old Age.
They discussed drugs such as Lecanemab and future blood tests to detect dementia, calling them “game- changers” in dementia treatment.
Approval of Lecanemab for use in Australia is being considered by the Therapeutic Goods Administration and there are also trials underway in Australia to investigate if it can help to clear the protein amyloid in the brain and slow down cognitive decline.
It is one of two drugs that may soon come onto the market in Australia to treat dementia, of which Alzheimer’s disease is the most common type.
The other is Donanemab which has been shown in trials to significantly slow cognitive and functional decline in people living with early symptomatic Alzheimer’s disease.
Both are described as modifying the disease, not a cure.
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