04-09-2024, 01:12 AM
This seems like a positive development for the early treatment of Alzheimer's, at the very least. Apparently, the NHS is ready to embark on a large-scale trials to evaluate the effectiveness of blood tests in diagnosing dementia.
Thousands of people in the UK are to take part in countrywide trials to identify accurate and quick blood tests that can diagnose dementia, led by research teams at UCL and Dementias Platform UK, based at the University of Oxford.
The trials will capitalise on recent breakthroughs in potential dementia blood tests to generate the evidence needed for them to be used in the NHS within the next 5 years.
From NeuroscienceNews.com: UK to Begin Nationwide Blood Test Trials for Dementia
I found it troubling that they have a problem with the number of patients who can access the current testing methods, an abysmal 2%.
Currently, people are usually diagnosed using memory tests and brain scans. These are less accurate than ‘gold standard’ tests like PET scans or lumbar punctures, which can confirm what type of dementia they have. However, only 2% of people can access these specialist tests.
What could be the reason for such a low number of people?
Further on...
This reflects levels of two hallmark proteins found inside the brain in Alzheimer’s disease – amyloid and tau. The researchers will carry out a clinical trial to see whether measuring p-tau217 in the blood increases the rate of diagnosis for Alzheimer’s disease both in people with early dementia, but also in those with mild, progressive problems with memory.
While the report reads like a press release from the organization, it remains an optimistic development, if it all holds true, and they can correlate these protein levels across a large and diverse population.
Thousands of people in the UK are to take part in countrywide trials to identify accurate and quick blood tests that can diagnose dementia, led by research teams at UCL and Dementias Platform UK, based at the University of Oxford.
The trials will capitalise on recent breakthroughs in potential dementia blood tests to generate the evidence needed for them to be used in the NHS within the next 5 years.
From NeuroscienceNews.com: UK to Begin Nationwide Blood Test Trials for Dementia
I found it troubling that they have a problem with the number of patients who can access the current testing methods, an abysmal 2%.
Currently, people are usually diagnosed using memory tests and brain scans. These are less accurate than ‘gold standard’ tests like PET scans or lumbar punctures, which can confirm what type of dementia they have. However, only 2% of people can access these specialist tests.
What could be the reason for such a low number of people?
Further on...
This reflects levels of two hallmark proteins found inside the brain in Alzheimer’s disease – amyloid and tau. The researchers will carry out a clinical trial to see whether measuring p-tau217 in the blood increases the rate of diagnosis for Alzheimer’s disease both in people with early dementia, but also in those with mild, progressive problems with memory.
While the report reads like a press release from the organization, it remains an optimistic development, if it all holds true, and they can correlate these protein levels across a large and diverse population.
