Lielbritānijas mērķis ir pārveidot Alcheimera diagnozi ar asins analīzes izmēģinājumu

Researchers in the UK have announced a trial of an Alzheimer’s blood test that is expected to revolutionize the diagnosis of the disease.

Researchers at University College London (UCL) will assess whether the test could improve diagnosis accuracy from 70% to more than 90%.

Doctors say early diagnosis is critical with Alzheimer’s disease, the most common cause of dementia, as the earlier treatment is started, the more effective it is. Around 1,100 people will be recruited by around 20 memory clinics to take part in a trial that will assess how well the test can work in Britain’s National Health Service (NHS).

Alzheimer’s disease is associated with the buildup of two key proteins in the brain, called amyloid and tau. The new blood test measures the protein P-TAU217, which is considered an effective biomarker for the presence of both rogue proteins in the brain.

While the test has already proven effective in detecting P-TAU217, scientists want to investigate whether administering it when memory issues are being assessed could aid in diagnosis and treatment.

Experts believe that blood tests, such as plasma P-TAU217, can detect the presence of amyloid and tau as accurately as current—but more invasive—methods such as PET scans and lumbar punctures.

The trial is part of the Biomarker Challenge, a multi-billion pound research project supported by Alzheimer’s charities in the UK that hopes to develop breakthrough blood tests to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease.

Jonathan Schott, professor of neurology at the UCL Dementia Research Centre, who is leading the trial, said he hopes it will “take us a step forward in changing how we diagnose dementia”.

Early diagnosis will become even more important in the coming years “as a new generation of treatments emerge that can slow the decline in memory and thinking,” he said.

“Timely diagnosis will be key to ensuring these advances reach the people who need them most,” he added.