The Strange Case Of The Man Immune To Alzheimer’s
From The World, the Universe and Us by New Scientist
May 8, 2026 · 17 min
About this episode
The episode discusses the extraordinary case of Doug Whitney, a man who is immune to Alzheimer's despite carrying a genetic mutation for the disease.
Episode 367 Some people are genetically destined to develop Alzheimer’s disease. But one man who carried the devastating mutation seems to have escaped it entirely - and scientists think it may be because of his job. Doug Whitney inherited the rare variant of a gene that should have caused early-onset Alzheimer’s in his mid-40s. Many of his family members died from it. Instead, he is now 76 years old with no memory problems and no trace of the disease. Researchers investigating his case uncovered a surprising clue: his inadvertent heat exposure while working as a mechanic in ship engine rooms. Could heat exposure really help shield the brain from Alzheimer’s? What does Doug’s case reveal about the disease? And should we all build a sauna in our backyard? Rowan Hooper is joined by New Scientist reporter Alice Klein to discuss Doug Whitney’s extraordinary case and what it could mean for the future of Alzheimer’s research. To read more about these stories, visit https://www.newscientist.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
People in this episode
Host: Rowan Hooper
Guest: Alice Klein
Topics covered
- Alzheimer's disease
- genetics
- heat exposure
- brain health
- research
- mechanics
Keywords
- Alzheimer's
- genetic mutation
- Doug Whitney
- heat exposure
- brain protection
- research findings
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: New Scientist
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