Yellowhammer Times

There were 175 deaths with cancer listed as the underlying cause reported in Alabama during the week ending Sept. 3, 2022, a 6.7% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Sept. 3, 2022, there were 978 deaths in the state. 25.6% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 17.9% were from cancer and 8% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.8% 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 Sept. 3, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 27, 2022
Heart disease	250	261
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	175	164
Cerebrovascular diseases	48	54
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	45	44
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	44	50
Alzheimer's disease	36	50
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	34	32
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	24	20
Diabetes mellitus	20	22
Influenza and pneumonia	10	18

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 3, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 27, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	86	101