05 July 2023 , 13:30
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For women, hormones can often cause unusual symptoms or bodily changes. But sometimes, those changes are a sign of something more serious.
This was sadly the case for Mirror columnist Fiona Phillips, who yesterday confirmed that she has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's.
In the run-up to her diagnosis, the 62-year-old former breakfast TV host had been suffering from brain fog and anxiety that left her "tearful" and a "shadow of [herself]".
She detailed these symptoms in an emotional column for the Mirror in 2022, describing what it was like for her to go through what she thought was 'the change'.
Fiona said: "I've cried a thousand rivers in the past few weeks and I've got nothing to be sad about. I've been fearing for my sanity and am scared to do things I've been doing with ease for years."
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Fiona opened up about her diagnosis in an exclusive interview with The Mirror (Daily Mirror)However, she's since revealed that Alzheimer's was the true cause of these first, early symptoms.
In an exclusive interview with The Mirror Fiona's husband, 64-year-old This Morning boss Martin Frizell, said: "We thought maybe it was the menopause because all the symptoms were there; brain fog, anxiety, and confusion.
"We got in touch with a menopause specialist who took her under their wing and put her on HRT but while that improved some symptoms, the brain fog remained."
The experts recommended she seek help for her memory loss and after months of tests, Fiona got the results she'd been dreading.
It was Alzheimer's, the disease that had also 'ravaged' her family, with her parents, grandparents and uncle being "crippled" by the same illness.
"It's something I might have thought I'd get at 80," Fiona explaned. "But I was still only 61 years old.
"I felt more angry than anything else because this disease has already impacted my life in so many ways; my poor mum was crippled with it, then my dad, my grandparents, my uncle. It just keeps coming back for us."
Fiona's family has been 'ravaged' by the disease (S Meddle/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
Fiona's husband Martin has been supporting her through the health battle (Corbis via Getty Images)Her mum Amy developed the disease at just 54 years old and she had also struggled with menopause.
Fiona previously wrote about her mum's experience with this as well, claiming that menopause had "slaughtered" the woman she knew, taking her from a "warm, smiley, busy lady" to a "tearful, fearful wreck".
"It seems to be doing its very best to see me off too," she wrote. "It has left me feeling so dark, day in and day out."
Both Alzheimer's disease and menopause can often have similar symptoms as menopause often impacts women's cognitive function.
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The Menopause Charity explains, "Brain fog is a very common symptom of the menopause, and many women say that their brains feel like 'cotton wool'."
Women are twice as likely to develop Alzheimer's - the most common form of dementia - than men, but some researchers believe this is down to the fact that women live longer.
The journalist is currently taking part in a revolutionary new drug trial (Daily Mirror)There's currently no cure for Alzheimer's, but Fiona is taking part in a revolutionary new drug trial at University College Hospital (UCH) in London that hopes to produce medication that could slow the progression of the disease or even reverse it.
However, it's not known whether the medication Fiona is trialling is the real deal or a placebo, as around half of those involved are on placebo drugs and not Miridesap.
"Even the people we see for the checkups don't know if Fiona is on the real drug or a placebo," her husband told the Mirror.
"It's been weeks now and I like to think her condition is stabilising but I am too close to know really, that could just be my wishful thinking."
But this gamble won't stop Fiona from continuing with the drug trial, in case it could help others in the future.
She added: "Even if it isn't helping me, these tests will be helping other people in the future so I just have to keep going."