Her illness lasted only 55 days from beginning to end. Do not be afraid to hug or touch. There is no evidence that casual contact spreads the disease. Before the actual diagnosis Mom was treated with Prozac which did not do a thing. When she could no longer do anything for herself we transferred her to a Hospice home.
Most cases are sporadic and of an unknown cause.
If an autopsy is performed DNA tests can be done to determine if there was a predisposition to the disease or if it is hereditary. Not knowing what stage of the disease your father is in I would also tell you not to take anything he says to you personally. The disease destroys the brain in stages and in different locations and could cause your father to say some pretty out of character things that could hurt you. Her second doctor assured us that she was most likely in no pain. We are praying this was so.