An innovative new blood test is being developed to help detect the signs of Alzheimer’s disease.
New research has suggested that the test could actually be just as good at detecting the signs of Alzheimer’s disease as lumbar punctures.
“This study is a hugely welcome step in the right direction as it shows that blood tests can be just as accurate as more invasive and expensive tests at predicting if someone has features of Alzheimer’s disease in their brain,” said Dr. Richard Oakley, the associate director of research and innovation at the Alzheimer’s Society.
“Furthermore, it suggests results from these tests could be clear enough to not require further follow-up investigations for some people living with Alzheimer’s disease, which could speed up the diagnosis pathway significantly in future. However, we still need to see more research across different communities to understand how effective these blood tests are across everyone who lives with Alzheimer’s disease,” he added.
Meanwhile, Dr. Sheona Scales, the director of research at Alzheimer’s Research U.K., believes the new test has “huge potential to revolutionize diagnosis for people with suspected Alzheimer’s.”
“This study suggests that measuring levels of a protein called p-tau217 in the blood could be as accurate as currently used lumbar punctures for detecting the biological hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease, and superior to a range of other tests currently under development,” Dr. Scales explained.
“This adds to a growing body of evidence that this particular test has huge potential to revolutionize diagnosis for people with suspected Alzheimer’s,” she added.
