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Dementia in numbers

The graphs and statistics have been researched and created by Alzheimer's Research UK. It is part of their effort to raise awareness about dementia and the diseases that cause it.

We would like to thank them for their vision and generosity in creating and sharing this valuable resource.

The number of people with dementia in the UK will treble by 2050.

The number of prescriptions of dementia drugs in the UK for each of the symptomatic treatments available.

Dementia costs the health and social care sector more than cancer and heart disease combined.

Dementia is the leading cause of death in the UK. The graph below shows the increase in the proportion of deaths due to Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia over the last several years, compared to several other leading causes of death.

Global costs by sector show that the majority of costs are costs of care, either direct social care or informal care.

The estimated total cost of dementia in the UK by each sector is shown below. Informal care costs make up the largest portion of the cost, followed by social care and healthcare.