A blood test for diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease may be as accurate as a painful and invasive lumbar puncture. According to experts, this will lead to a revolution in this area of medicine.
According to experts, Measuring p-tau217 protein levels in the blood may be as good a method for detecting early signs of Alzheimer’s disease and better than other tests, currently under development. It is noted that this protein records biological changes that occur in the brain as a result of the disease.
In a study of 786 people, researchers were able to identify patients who were more, less or less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease in the future.
“This study is a particularly welcome step in the right direction as it shows that blood tests can be as accurate as more invasive, expensive methods” said Dr. Richard Oakley, executive director of the Altzheimer Society. “However, we still need further research in different groups to understand how effective these tests can be for everyone living with Alzheimer’s disease,” he added.
Today, the only way to prove that someone has a concentration of proteins in the brain is to undergo either a lumbar puncture, with a needle inserted between the bones in the lower part of the spine, or a PET scan.
Dr Seona Scales, director of research at Alzheimer’s Research UK, said there was a need to have a clearer understanding of how these blood tests work in real-life healthcare systems. And David Curtis, professor at the UCL Institute of Genetics at University College London, emphasized that “everyone over 50 will be able to have a routine test every few years, much in the same way they check their blood cholesterol levels.”.
“It is quite possible that Available treatments for Alzheimer’s disease work better in those diagnosed early using the above method. However, I believe that the real hope lies in the development of more effective therapeutic methods. “Combining a simple diagnostic test with an effective treatment can have dramatic consequences at both the individual and societal levels,” he also noted.
The specific study was prepared by Dr. Nicholas Aston from the University of Gothenburg and his colleagues, and published in the journal Jama Neurology.
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