Tue 8 Jul, 2014
The new blood test which could potentially predict the transition of someone with mild cognitive impairment to dementia is still some way off being a widely available diagnostic test, according to The
Alzheimer Society of Ireland.
The research carried out by scientists at Oxford University and King’s College London used blood samples from over 1,000 people and MRI scans from 473 people and identified 16 proteins which were implicated in the development of the Alzheimer's and could be used as markers for dementia even before full symptoms develop.
The Alzheimer Society of Ireland welcomes the research as there are currently no effective long-lasting drug treatments for Alzheimer’s, and it is believed that many new clinical trials fail because drugs are given too late in the disease process. A blood test which could be used to identify patients in the early stages of memory loss for clinical trials to find drugs to halt the progression of the disease could be a significant breakthrough, according to
Gerry Martin, CEO, The Alzheimer Society of Ireland.
“There currently is no blood test available in Ireland which is able to predict the risk of someone developing
Alzheimer’s or dementia in the future so we welcome all research into finding more effective treatments p articularly in the early stages,” says Martin.
However while the research has been received positively, The Society warns that at the early stages of research, further studies would need to be carried out before this test could be rolled out to people in Ireland.
“This particular new test examines ten proteins in the blood and claims it can predict with 87% accuracy the transition between mild cognitive impairment and dementia. So while the results of this single study show positive signs, it needs to be increased to include larger studies and accuracy would need to be improved before it could become a widely used diagnostic blood test for detecting Alzheimer’s,” says Martin.

EDITOR’S NOTES

There are approximately 48,000 people living with dementia in Ireland. This number is expected to increase significantly in the coming years; rising to 68,216 people by 2021 and to 132,000 people by
2041.
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The majority of people with dementia (63%) live at home in the community. Most people living with dementia are cared for by a family member and there are approximately 50,000 dementia family carers in Ireland.

Dementia is an umbrella term used to describe a range of conditions which cause changes and damage to the brain.
 The overall cost of dementia care in Ireland is just over €1.69 billion per annum; 48% of this is attributable to family care; 43% is accounted for by residential care; formal health and social care services contribute only 9% to the total cost.

The Alzheimer Society of Ireland National Helpline is open six days a week Monday to Friday 10am-5pm and Saturday 10 am to 4 pm on 1800 341 341.

Figures referenced to Cahill, S. & Pierce, M. (2013) The Prevalence of Dementia in Ireland
For further information please contact Nicole Matthews, Communications Manager, The Alzheimer
Society of Ireland on 086-3988 066.