A new diagnostic blood test for Alzheimer's disease was found to correctly identify the condition around 90% of the time, outperforming specialists' assessments based on physical and cognitive symptoms. The breakthrough offers a potential tool to accurately diagnose the disease and at earlier stages of development.
Alzheimer's affects almost 7 million Americans yet remains notoriously difficult to diagnose. Accumulations of molecules known as amyloid beta plaques and misfolded tau proteins are believed to play a key role (see 101) but are challenging to detect and measure.
The new test—called PrecivityAD2—measures the ratios of both present in a patient’s blood, plugging the result into a proprietary algorithm to predict the risk of developing Alzheimer’s. Doctors hope the simple and cheap test can replace expensive scans and invasive spinal taps currently considered best-in-class for diagnosis.
Watch our overview on what Alzheimer's is and how it works here (w/video).
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