NeuroNex — Understanding Alzheimer's

01 — Disease Course

Three stages, one continuous thread

Alzheimer's doesn't arrive all at once. It moves gradually along a continuum — recognizing where someone is helps families know what kind of support to offer next.

Early Stage

Mild

Misplacing items, trouble finding words, difficulty planning or organizing. Often mistaken for normal aging. Most people are still independent and aware something is changing.

Middle Stage

Moderate

The longest stage, often lasting years. Confusion about time and place, difficulty recognizing family, changes in mood or behavior, and need for daily care assistance increase.

Late Stage

Severe

Loss of ability to communicate verbally, full-time care needs, and physical decline. Emotional connection through touch, voice, and music often remains possible.

02 — Detection & Prevention

Warning signs and brain health

Knowing what to watch for — and what actually helps protect against it — are two sides of the same fight against Alzheimer's.

Normal aging vs. warning signs

Some forgetfulness is a normal part of getting older. Alzheimer's looks different — it disrupts daily life, not just the occasional memory slip.

Typical age-related changes

Sometimes forgetting names, but recalling them later
Occasionally misplacing items, but retracing steps to find them
Needing help with new technology, not familiar routines
Making a wrong decision once in a while

Possible warning signs

Forgetting recently learned information, asking the same questions repeatedly
Losing track of dates, seasons, or how time is passing
Trouble completing familiar tasks, like managing a budget or following a recipe
Withdrawing from work, hobbies, or social activities

What the research says about brain health

No single habit prevents Alzheimer's, but a 2015 Finnish trial — FINGER — found that combining several lifestyle changes measurably slowed cognitive decline in at-risk adults.

Move daily

Regular aerobic exercise improves blood flow to the brain and was a core pillar of the FINGER protocol's combined intervention.

Ngandu et al., The Lancet, 2015

Eat for vascular health

Diets emphasizing vegetables, fish, and limited saturated fat — similar to Mediterranean patterns — were linked to slower cognitive decline.

Morris et al., Alzheimer's & Dementia, 2015

Keep the mind active

Cognitive training — puzzles, learning new skills, structured mental exercises — was directly tested as one of FINGER's four intervention arms.

Ngandu et al., The Lancet, 2015

Stay socially connected

Social isolation is independently associated with higher dementia risk; regular meaningful contact appears protective.

Livingston et al., The Lancet Commission, 2020

03 — For Families

Caregivers carry this too

Alzheimer's reshapes the caregiver's life as much as the patient's. Burnout, grief, and isolation are common — and treatable as part of the care plan, not an afterthought.

You don't have to carry this alone.

NeuroNex connects caregivers with respite resources, peer support, and tools to track their own wellbeing alongside their loved one's care.

Find caregiver support

04 — Take Action

Turn awareness into action

Every contribution — time, dollars, or a shared story — helps a family navigating this disease feel less alone.

Volunteer

From companionship visits to technical work on NeuroNex itself, there's a role suited to your time and skills.

See how to help

Donate

Funds support free access to the NeuroNex app for families who can't afford memory-care technology.

Give support

Share your story

Family stories help others recognize early signs sooner and feel less isolated in their own journey.

Submit a story

05 — Volunteer

Volunteer with NeuroNex

Join a growing movement of students, families, and professionals dedicated to reducing Alzheimer's isolation, empowering caregivers, and translating science for the communities that need it most.

What volunteers do

Lead community Alzheimer's awareness workshops and events
Support caregivers through companionship visits and check-in calls
Help families navigate resources and local services
Contribute to NeuroNex content, research translation, and outreach
Help curate and expand the NeuroNex Research Database by summarizing new Alzheimer's findings in plain language
Assist with app testing, technical development, or design
Represent NeuroNex at health fairs and school presentations

All activities are coordinated to ensure a meaningful, safe, and impactful experience for both volunteers and the families we serve.

Who can volunteer?

Middle school, high school, and college students
Parents and adults who want to contribute their time
Teachers and school clubs looking for service projects
Healthcare professionals and researchers
Anyone passionate about Alzheimer's awareness and community care

Why volunteer?

Reduce isolation for patients and caregivers
Build empathy, leadership, and research literacy
Earn verified volunteer hours for school and college applications
Make real, lasting connections in your community
Be part of a student-led national awareness movement

Ready to get started? Head to our contact page and select "Volunteer inquiry" as your subject — our team will reach out with next steps tailored to your availability and interests.

Get started

06 — The App

NeuroNex: the memory care companion

A companion app for families living with Alzheimer's every day — personalized memory support, cognitive engagement, and caregiver tools, grounded in the same research that drives our awareness work.

Memory Capsule System

Families upload photos, voice recordings, and life events. The app delivers personalized daily prompts to reinforce emotional memory pathways.

Face Recognition Trainer

Repeated, gentle exposure to familiar faces with voice explanations, helping slow the loss of name and face recognition over time.

Caregiver Dashboard

Upload memories, track engagement, monitor usage patterns, and stay connected to the care process from anywhere.

Daily Micro-Exercises

30-second cognitive tasks, from matching faces to names to personal timeline ordering, to keep the mind engaged without overwhelming the patient.

Daily Memory Prompt

"This is your daughter, Sarah. She loves you very much and calls every Sunday morning."

Tap to hear Sarah's voice message

Recognition Exercise

Who is this person?

Tap to reveal name and relationship

Today's engagement

3 of 5 activities completed

07 — About

Yashasvi Kompella / Founder

Yashasvi Kompella

Founder & President, NeuroNex

I am a rising senior at Edison High School STEM Academy with a deep interest in the intersection of neuroscience and community impact. My research spans computational neurology, Alzheimer's disease pathology, and biomedical AI, and it was through that research that the full weight of this disease became real to me, not as a set of statistics, but as something reshaping the daily lives of millions of families.

After conducting thorough research on Alzheimer's disease, including work on DNA origami-based drug delivery systems and AI-driven risk modeling, I became motivated to do something beyond the lab. Too much critical science stays locked inside journals, inaccessible to the families who need it most. NeuroNex exists to close that gap.

My goal is to carry this work forward as a physician-scientist, building the bridge between discovery and care at every stage of my career.

Our Mission

NeuroNex exists to translate Alzheimer's research into accessible knowledge and practical tools, support patients and caregivers throughout the disease journey, and build a community where scientific understanding leads to real human connection. We believe that awareness without action is incomplete, and that every family deserves both the information and the support to face this disease with dignity.