"More than 1,000 people across the UK with suspected dementia are to be offered a blood test for Alzheimer's disease which it is hoped could revolutionise diagnosis of the disease. The blood test can detect biomarkers for rogue proteins which accumulate in the brains of patients with the condition and will be used in addition to pen and paper cognitive tests, which often misdiagnose it in its early stages."
"The new blood test, which costs around 100, measures a biomarker called p-tau217, which reflects the presence of both proteins. Previously, the only way to confirm Alzheimer's was by specialist PET brain scans and lumbar punctures to extract cerebrospinal fluid. However, these "gold standard" tests are not part of routine Alzheimer's diagnosis and only 2% of patients ever receive them."
More than 1,000 people with suspected dementia across the UK will be offered a blood test that detects p-tau217, a biomarker linked to amyloid and tau accumulation. The test will be used alongside pen-and-paper cognitive assessments at 20 NHS memory clinics and aims to increase diagnostic accuracy from about 70% to over 90%. Recruitment has started at a clinic in Essex with 19 additional sites planned. The test costs around 100 and could reduce reliance on PET scans and lumbar punctures, procedures that currently confirm Alzheimer's for only about 2% of patients, enabling earlier access to treatment, support, and planning.
Read at www.bbc.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]