Dementia may be the country’s next big health crisis with no cause, cure or treatment, and diagnosis rates climbing.

Current figures say around 330,000 Australians already suffer from the debilitating condition. Each week more than 1700 new cases are diagnosed, with estimates that figure could rise to 7000 a week by 2050.

Prominent Australian journalist Ita Buttrose has worked for several years as the president of Alzheimer’s Australia, she says it’s the “public health challenge of the 21st century.”

Leading expert Prof Henry Brodaty from the University of New South Wales says the disease will be a continuing burden on society, "the numbers are huge and it's a tragedy for their families and it's a tragedy for society," he said. Current estimates suggest there could be around a million Australians with dementia by 2050.

Advanced genetic treatments are helping find an adequate treatment or cure, but there are already ways to reduce the risk; regular exercise, blood pressure checks, maintaining a healthy weight, avoiding obesity and type-2 diabetes will all help minimise chances. Diets rich in antioxidants including fruits and vegetables can help, small amounts of alcohol may be helpful, though drinking too much is a risk factor.

Alzheimer's disease is the only kind of neuro-degenerative dementia with medication to treat it, though advances in scanning technology are allowing the precursors to be indentified earlier than ever.