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Signs of Alzheimer’s disease may be detectable before significant symptoms are obvious - Alzheimer's Society responds
In the largest study to date, The University of Glasgow's latest research investigates the genetic risk of Alzheimer's Disease and whether people with a higher genetic risk may show differences in brain structure long before symptoms occur.
The full research paper can be found in Neuropsychopharmacology.
Fiona Carragher, Director of Research and Influencing at Alzheimer’s Society said:
‘If we can accurately identify people at risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease later in life, it could be a real gamechanger. Early detection of those at a higher risk has the potential to pave the way for new treatments in the future and help researchers understand what causes diseases like Alzheimer’s to develop.
‘The scale of this study is significant. It adds further evidence to the theory that some brain changes associated with Alzheimer’s disease can start many years before symptoms such as memory loss.
‘However, it only looked at people from a white European background – we need to better understand whether there are associations between different genetic risk factors and changes in the brain in people from other ethnic communities.
‘Research will beat dementia, but we need more funding. The Government must honour their commitment to double dementia research funding to provide hope for future generations. We owe to the 850,000 people in the UK currently living with dementia.’
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