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This Podcast Will Kill You

This Podcast Will Kill You

Special Episode: Robert Kolker & The Vanishing Family

Oct 6, 2026 · 48m

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On this episode

About this episode

A diagnosis of dementia of any kind is devastating. For those with the hereditary form of frontotemporal dementia (FTD), it could mean an entire family is destined for the same fate. In this week’s TPWKY book club episode, award-winning author Robert Kolker paints an intimate portrait of one such family in The Vanishing Family: Love, Fate, and the Quest to End Dementia . Through Kolker’s compassionate and incisive writing, readers learn about FTD alongside this family and gain a unique insight into the painful and complex decisions the siblings face. Kolker also presents a scoping view of the history and possible future of dementia research, one that may allow fate to be…