Raquel's secret dementia battle

ACTRESS Raquel Welch had Alzheimer's when she died of heart failure, her death certificate shows.

- Christopher Bucktin

The One Million Years BC and two-time Golden Globe winner, who died aged 82 in February, had not revealed she was battling the debilitating brain disease.

The condition, the most common type of dementia, was listed on her death certificate, which was seen by tabloid news site TMZ.

Alzheimer's, for which there is no cure, slowly destroys cognitive skills and ability to carry out even the most basic tasks.

Cardiac arrest was cited as another contributory factor when Raquel suffered heart failure at home in southern California.

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