Grand Canyon Times

There were 17 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Arizona during the week ending Oct. 8, 2022, a 22.7% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Oct. 8, 2022, there were 1,290 deaths in the state. 19.7% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.5% were from cancer and 3.3% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 10.1% 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 Oct. 8, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 1, 2022
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	264	258
Heart disease	254	264
Cerebrovascular diseases	64	57
Alzheimer's disease	57	55
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	53	59
Diabetes mellitus	39	39
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	25	40
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	17	22
Influenza and pneumonia	13	16
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	12	15

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 8, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Oct. 1, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	130	131