Early Alzheimer’s detection through blood test could delay disease: U of S prof

A new blood test may be able to predict who should be preparing for Alzheimer’s disease in the future, leading them to treatment that could delay symptoms.

Two similar studies were released by the Journal of Experimental Medicine and the Journal of the American Medical Association, outlining the blood test.

Saskatchewan Research Chair in Alzheimer disease Dr. Darrell Mousseau explained the ramifications of the studies to 650 CKOM Thursday.

“There is no cure for Alzheimer’s, and unfortunately, people aren’t concerned (until) symptoms start to appear. That’s a little bit of memory loss, or maybe a disruption in sleep. This is very typical for the ageing person. But with a person with Alzheimer’s, this is much more prevalent (and obvious),” he said.

The University of Saskatchewan professor said when identifying Alzheimer’s disease doctors look at two markers, identified as “beta-amyloid” and “tau.”

Tau is critical in maintaining the shape and connections between brain cells.

The blood test looks at the levels in the tau marker in the bloodstream, Mousseau said.

“If tau is disrupted, then the connection between cells is also disrupted. Therefore, the communication between cells is lost,” he said.

“The levels of tau in the blood are beginning to be viewed as being far more definitive in terms of being able to describe the onset of the disease that we now call Alzheimer’s.”

Mousseau said the test looks for specific changes with tau, something that has been definitive in the studies.

“If you have that change, it is almost 100 per cent certain that you have Alzheimer’s disease,” he said.

“This change in tau is a really, really strong indicator of the onset of Alzheimer’s, and it can help differentiate between Alzheimer’s and any other disease.”

The test can predict the disease up to 20 years before symptoms start. That can put the person on a course of therapy, which can delay the disease.

“So instead of getting it when you’re 65, you may get it when you’re 75 or 80. That gives you 10 or 15 more years of a normal life before the brain starts to act up,” Mousseau said.

He predicted that because of the two aligning studies, we could see this test available shortly.

Mousseau said it could become a screening technique that could be available in two years or less.

“A lot of people are going to be paying attention to. A lot of people are going to be trying to incorporate it into their normal clinical practice.”