Researchers at the Mass General Brigham Neuroscience Institute have found that a blood test measuring p-tau217 may help predict whether cognitively healthy older adults will develop impairment within the next five to ten years.
Participants with very high levels of the Alzheimer’s-linked biomarker faced an estimated 38% risk within five years and as much as a 78% risk over ten years—although the longer-term estimate is based on more limited data.
For me, this story is deeply personal. I lost my mother to Lewy Body dementia, or DLB, and I know too many families—particularly Black families—who have watched someone they love slowly disappear.
Ken & Lois Chester - my parents in 2002. Mom was already showing early signs of dementia.
During this episode of TechMobility Topics, I explain how Alzheimer’s damages the brain, examine several major forms of dementia, and discuss the enormous emotional and financial burden carried by families and unpaid caregivers.
This blood test is not yet a definitive prediction for an individual, nor can it prevent Alzheimer’s. But it could help researchers identify people at elevated risk earlier, improve clinical trials, and create a larger window for developing treatments that may delay cognitive decline.
