SEATTLE — As the only owner of an NFL team with a brain research laboratory, Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen is in a unique position to study whether repeated blows to the head lead to dementia.
The owner of the Seahawks announced Thursday he will pay for a two-year, $2.4 million study by scientists at the Allen Institute for Brain Science and the University of Washington in Seattle.
The study will use the Group Health “brain bank” of 500 brains donated over 25 years.
Researchers will look for links between head injuries and later health problems such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.
The NFL recently reached a $765 million settlement of concussion lawsuits that made about 19,000 retired players eligible for money and medical testing. Last week, the NFL Players Association announced a new organization to help former players with health and financial concerns.
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