CFCN - Saturday, May 25, 2024 - 10:00 a.m. (ET) - Segment #2

And even among those who do have access to primary care, there's long waits to see family doctors. There's long waits to see specialists or get imaging that's often required to make a cancer diagnosis. So, sometimes that cancer may progress to the point where they're having symptoms and the only place you can get urgent medical attention would be the emergency room. >> So, when we say urgent and when somebody is coming in with sort of advanced symptoms, how quickly are they diagnosed? >> So, it depends. In the emergency departments, several emergency departments often have access to imaging like CT scans and MRIs. Sometimes we can expedite that testing and find out the day that they have that they come into the emergency department. >> Oh, wow. >> But emergency departments across Canada are all very different. Some emergency departments don't have access to CT scanners and stuff like that. So, it really depends on when they're seen and when they can get that imaging. >> I also think from an emotional standpoint, being given that diagnosis in an emergency room is not ideal. >> I agree. So, we know we've seen reports kind of widespread across Canada that emergency departments are routinely overcrowded. There's long waits to see patient or to see a physician. And we're often seeing and managing patients in waiting rooms and hallways. And then you add on top of that a patient who may have a new suspected cancer diagnosis and having that conversation in that environment is likely distressing for patients. >> I can't imagine being in a hallway and giving given that diagnosis. So, what options do people have? If we're in a place right now in this country where you know so many people don't have a family physician, they believe the only option is to go in the ER if they've got some you know symptoms that they need to check out. What are their options do they have? >> Yeah, so I think trying to see wherever you get your health care if you don't have access to health care. Again, some people may need to need the emergency department, but we also need to look at when we have a patient with a suspected cancer diagnosis, how can we streamline their diagnostics to confirm whether it is cancer or not? And we talk a little bit about that in our editorial as well. >> Tell me a little bit about that. So, what needs to change right now? >> Yeah, so I think because of health care system issues, we need streamlined access to cancer diagnostics. So, oftentimes in the emergency department we can say this is suspicious for cancer, but we can't make that diagnosis until we've got a biopsy and pathology confirming that. So, we need streamlined care pathways to confirm that diagnosis for patients. And so, in our editorial, we talk about having increased access to diagnostic assessment programs which are routinely available for specific types of cancers in certain regions in Ontario. And so, if you have a patient with a suspected cancer, you can refer them to these diagnostic assessment programs who then take care of getting the imaging, whatever tissues required, and then referring appropriately to start treatment and if it is confirmed cancer. So, increased access to those types of programs. We also discuss patient navigator programs. So, a lot of times in the emergency department, if patients leave, they leave with a lot of uncertainties and having somebody that they can contact. >> Yes, big time. >> Yeah, to make sure that they're not lost to follow up, that there's somebody they can talk to about... >> Because that's such a lot-- That's such a big diagnosis with so much information. Probably not what you expect if you're going into an ER to even sort of digest that information. >> I agree. >> To have a point person. >> Yeah. >> Doctor, great to have you here today. Thank you. >> Thank you for having me. >> The number of younger people getting diagnosed with dementia in this country, that number is growing. A study done by the Alzheimer's Society of Canada predicts that by the year 2050 - look at the number on your screen - more than 40,000 people under the age of 65 will be living with dementia, when you compare that to the 28,000 people living with dementia in 2020. Dr. Sara Mitchell, who is a neurologist at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, is here to talk about what early-onset dementia really looks like and what to look for. Good morning to you. >> Good morning. Thanks so much for having me for this important topic. >> It really is important. When I say early-onset dementia, what exactly are we talking about? >> So, dementia really means memory and thinking difficulties that interfere with a person's day-to-day functioning. And this is usually a change from previous and is progressive. Now, when we think about dementia as a class, we typically think about it in people who are older, but early-onset means onset before the age of 65, usually between the ages of about 18 to 65. >> Lindsey: 18? >> It can be pretty young, yeah. >> Lindsey: That has to be rare, no? >> It is quite rare. So early-onset dementia as a group is less than 10% of all causes of dementia. But the interesting thing about it is that it really spans a bunch of different causes. So we typically think about things like Alzheimer's disease, which would be the most common cause in older people, and still is a very common cause in younger people. But there's also many, many other causes of dementia in young people. >> So for those that get diagnosed early, what are some of the symptoms? >> So the symptoms can look similar to the older onset, but there are some important differences. So the main symptoms are cognitive and thinking difficulties, so things like memory problems, language problems, difficulty

with finding your way in space. There can also be personality and behavioural changes. There can be motor changes. So things like Parkinsonism. And what separates early-onset or young-onset cases is that these tend to be all clustering at the same time. In older cases, these come on kind of more slowly over time. In younger cases, these can be very fulminant and sometimes look pretty atypical, making the diagnosis harder to make. >> I bet. Do we know why some people get dementia earlier in life than others? >> It's a good question, and I would say overall we don't know. There are some things we do know. So your family history and your genetic risk play a role. About 5% of early-onset cases are genetic in cause. And then there are also some lifestyle factors that can influence your risk. So things like your exercise level, your vascular risk factor. So like high blood pressure, cholesterol, things that are controllable, so how well you control those. And then things like substance use, alcohol misuse, acquired brain injuries, those can all impact your risk of developing dementia at an early age. >> If you're diagnosed in, let's say, your 40s, how long until the disease starts to really impact your life? >> Yeah. So every person is different and every story is different. And so some people can have pretty rapid courses, and on a whole, a young onset dementia group would have a more rapid onset. So those impacting your daily functioning, impacting your relationships leading to divorce or loss of romantic, family and friend relationships, breakdown of your ability to perform at work. So these can be really catastrophic diseases, in terms of your ability to function in your prime of life. >> You know, Doctor, I was thinking, when I was prepping for this interview, if I found out in my 40s that-- would I want to know if I wasn't-- it wasn't affecting my whole life? Because I'm thinking, like, is there anything I can do about this? Is there anything anybody can do? >> Yeah. So it's a really important question that, as a whole, it has very different answers. So there are some causes of early-onset dementia that are reversible and treatable. When we think about the degenerative causes, there aren't cures for those. But there are-- there is a new horizon of what we call disease modifying therapies that have been approved in the States, some that are coming to Canada, that can make an impact on the treatment of these diseases. Right now in Canada, the focus is on symptomatic therapies. So the same type of therapies we use to improve people's memory and thinking in older people. And then we also support and treat things like behavioural symptoms, personality changes, motor symptoms with targeted treatments. And I'll just add that in this age group, it's so important to also look at the non-pharmacological treatments. So really supporting patients and their families who are going through a crisis at a really critical point in their lives and really require the support of a system and a broader healthcare system. >> Yeah, the full support, the full circle. Dr. Sara Mitchell, thank you. It's such an important topic. Thanks for being here. >> Thanks so much for having me. >> Akshay: Ahead on Your Morning: The cost of keeping the Bank of Mom and Dad open. When the Murrays discovered Gain Scent Beads, they fell in love with the irresistible scent. Huh, huh, so did their dog Roger. Gain Scent Beads keep even the stinkiest stuff smelling fresh. [ ] By reliably delivering more the Hyundai KONA SUV has earned, “Best Residual Value,” from JD Power four years in a row. [ ] From its advanced technology to its durability we took the best-selling subcompact SUV in Canada and made it more WAH. [Hyundai sting] Here's Amy with the Flow Forecast. Like the weather, your flow changes daily and so should your Tampax size. Heavy downpours coming in? Size up. But if it hurts to remove? Size down. And only Tampax has five sizes for your changing flow. Pack your Tampax combo! ( ) [bell ringing] ding...ding... ( ) [creaking] ( ) [creaking. gasp...] ( ) ( ) IKEA. Bring Home to Life. Want a smarter way to mop? Introducing the new Swiffer PowerMop, an all-in-one cleaning tool with a 360° swivel head that goes places a regular mop just can't. Mop Smarter with the new Swiffer PowerMop. [Song playing - Here Comes theHotstepper by Ini Kamoze] [people shaking the ice in their cups] [people shaking the ice in their cups]

[people shaking the ice in their cups] Febreze! I use Febreze Fabric Refresher everyday. To make my house smell amazing. On my bed... My couch... My jacket or jeans in between washes... Even shoes. Febreze doesn't cover up odors with scent, but fights them... ...and freshens! Over one thousand uses. Febreze Fabric Refresher. You've got a friend in me ( ) You've got a friend in me ( ) You just remember what your old pal said, boy You've got a friend in me ( ) It's a celebration of friendship and beyond. From the new parade, to Together Forever, a new nighttime spectacular fireworks show. Pixar Fest, at the Disneyland Resort for a limited time. Starting April 26th. With new Scope Squeez mouthwash concentrate, just add water, squeeze to control the strength of your mouthwash, and find a zone all your own. ( ) Scope Squeez. I heard it wanders the streets at night in search of food. I hear it can carry two kayaks right on its back. You know how nobody can find parking on gameday? It found a way. The new Subaru Crosstrek. The true Urban Legend. [ ] Ever notice some odours don't come out in the wash? Odours from sweat, urine,and other musty odours can get trappedin fabrics. Try DownyRinse & Refresh. It helps remove trapped odours 3-times better than detergent alone. Try Downy Rinse & Refresh. Closed captioning of this program is brought to you in part by PetSmart. Book grooming, training, PetsHotel & doggy day camp at services.petsmart.ca (Dynamic instrumental music) >> So I think we can all agree, the cost of living is really high right now. You have rent, you have groceries, maybe student loans. They all cost a lot, especially if you are a young person fresh out of university or working an entry-level job. So this could be why a Canada Life study found that more than 90%... 90%! ...of Canadian parents are financially supporting their adult children. So how does this impact the financial future of parents, in the long run? We've got money expert Robyn Thompson here with us today with that answer. Great to have you in. >> Good morning. >> So, to start, you say parents financially supporting their adult kids is turning into a bit of a phenomenon. What do you mean by that? >> 90%, right? 90%. It is a phenomenon, and I don't think it's going anywhere. It's here to stay. When we're looking at some of these numbers, one in three actually say that they feel like it's going to impact their retirement, and close to 60% of people who are retired are actually saying that they're doing one large-time sums. So whether it be for a wedding, whether be for a house down-payment, whether be for the grandkids' education, it is so expensive to live, and people are finding themselves in a place where they want to help support their children. Again, I don't think it's going away. So this is about management. How do you manage your finances when you're in a position where you feel like you want to help your adult children? >> You want to help your adult children, and maybe you're also helping aging parents. Like, there are financial costs coming at you from every direction. >> It's a sandwich generation. So it's people are helping both sides of it. So how do we manage that? What does it look like for both the children and for the adults? >> Yeah, or you can't help if you don't have money yourself, right? >> Robyn: Yeah. >> So what are common ways that parents financially support their kids? What are they paying for? >> Yeah, so there's four categories that we take a look at across the board that we're seeing. So one of them is going to be housing. So housing, really we're taking a look at that as about, you know, it's rent. Is it mortgage? You know, how are you helping with the housing costs? It's education. So this would be things like paying for post-secondary education, graduate school debt. So is this good debt; is it bad debt? And then, finally, living expenses. This is everything from utilities to cable to groceries on the table. So across the board, we're seeing that, you know, the adults, you know, need some support from their parents. So they're really crossing the gamut when it comes to where they need support, how they need support. But it's something that, again, like it's not going away, and we need to pay attention to it for our finances and to help give them a leg up. >> Yeah, so how are you seeing that this is impacting the ones who are paying for those who need help, whether it's parents or whoever is helping to support other people? How is it impacting them? >> So there's two sides of that conversation. So the impact can be huge. So one of the sides to look at is if you are supporting them and you are having a position where you don't have a significant amount of resources, it's going to have a huge impact on how you manage your finances. On the other side, there's also the type of people who have enough capital, who are in that position where they're transitioning their wealth from one generation to the next, who have excess funds. So if you are in the camp where you are stretching to make your money, then there's a few different impacts. So, number one, when it comes to housing, you have to look and see, are you carrying your own mortgage? And, at the same time, are you

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