Over 1,000 suspected dementia sufferers are to be offered a potentially revolutionary Alzheimer’s blood test. UCL scientists leading the trial believe the test will improve the accuracy of diagnosis from 70% to more than 90%.
The test measures a biomarker called p-tau217 — associated with the build-up of harmful proteins in the brain — and will be used alongside traditional pen and paper cognitive tests. Patients are set to be recruited from memory clinics to see how well the test operates in NHS pathways. The test costs just £100.
Previously, the only way of definitively diagnosing the disease was an expensive and invasive process which was only offered to 2% of patients: specialist PET brain scans and lumbar punctures to extract cerebrospinal fluid.
BIVDA welcomes this pioneering new trial which, if successful, could transform Alzheimer’s diagnosis for UK patients, leading to earlier detection and faster treatment.
