Evergreen Reporter

There were 21 deaths with influenza and pneumonia listed as the underlying cause reported in the state of Washington during the week ending June 17, a 75% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 17, there were 1,183 deaths in the state. 16.8% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 23.2% were from cancer and 0.9% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.8% 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 June 17	Deaths in Week Ending June 10
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	274	253
Heart disease	199	232
Cerebrovascular diseases	55	52
Alzheimer's disease	53	55
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	43	59
Diabetes mellitus	35	35
Influenza and pneumonia	21	12
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	13	10
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	11	13
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending June 17	Deaths in Week Ending June 10
Alzheimer disease and dementia	104	118