Bluegrass Times

There were 191 deaths with cancer listed as the underlying cause reported in Kentucky during the week ending Sept. 17, 2022, a 7.3% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Sept. 17, 2022, there were 863 deaths in the state. 19.6% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 22.1% were from cancer and 14.4% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.3% 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. 17, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 10, 2022
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	191	178
Heart disease	169	210
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	81	81
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	50	59
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	43	41
Cerebrovascular diseases	41	45
Alzheimer's disease	22	16
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	21	19
Diabetes mellitus	20	34
Influenza and pneumonia	13	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 17, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Sept. 10, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	72	80