My DH had a very good friend who was an alcoholic (definition absolutely fits what was listed, he drank every evening when he came home from work). He was 41. About 4 months ago, we got a phone call from family (we've moved away and live 600 miles from them) saying that he was in the hospital, and they didn't know what happened. His brain scan showed that his brain had atrophied. He never recovered and died about 3 days after he collapsed. That brain atrophy was due to his alcoholism. The family is saying that he died of a heart attack, but he had no chance of recovery because his brain was so damaged.