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Was my mother's cause of death really from Alzheimer's?

A fellow caregiver asked...

A hospice doctor put my mother's cause of death as end stage dementia/Alzheimer's. This concerns me because my Mom was able to ambulate without even a walker, fed, dressed herself, even knew her social security number. She had memory problems (but recognized everyone), but was hospitalized due to weakness,weight loss. It turned out she had esophagitis and had a large esophageal hernia so was vomiting blood. She couldn't eat or drink without that problem. I can't see how her cause of death would be end stage dementia. She was still able to make decisions on her own behalf, and the doctors concurred with this.

Could this cause of death be accurate?

Expert Answer

Ladislav Volicer, M.D., Ph.D., is recognized as an international expert on advanced dementia care. He is a courtesy full professor at the School of Aging Studies, University of South Florida, Tampa, and visiting professor at the Third Medical Faculty, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic. Twenty-five years ago, he established one of the first dementia special care units.

The way you describe your mother it is hard to believe she was considered to have end stage Alzheimer's disease. That is certainly not consistent with her ability to make decisions.