Yellowhammer Times

There were 206 deaths with cancer listed as the underlying cause reported in Alabama during the week ending May 8, 2021, a 3.7% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending May 8, 2021, there were 1,105 deaths in the state. 22.4% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 18.6% were from cancer and 10.8% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.1% of deaths were from Alzheimer's disease and dementia.

Studies show doctors and medical examiners may underreport Alzheimer's disease and dementia-related conditions as the underlying cause of death on death certificates, according to the National Institute on Aging.

Once infected, older adults with dementia are likely to develop a more severe and dangerous illness. The diseases which make an older adult more vulnerable to COVID-19 are age-associated chronic conditions, according to the Bright Focus Foundation.

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending May 8, 2021	Deaths in Week Ending May 1, 2021
Heart disease	247	293
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	206	214
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	71	64
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	61	44
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	58	39
Cerebrovascular diseases	56	58
Alzheimer's disease	41	48
Diabetes mellitus	35	23
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	20	25
Influenza and pneumonia	10	21

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending May 8, 2021	Deaths in Week Ending May 1, 2021
Alzheimer disease and dementia	78	83