With Life There is Hope

We've been following developments in Alzheimer's Disease research and treatment not only because close friends and relatives have succumbed, but also because we ourselves may have a genetic susceptibility to the condition. From two years ago:

One leading theory postulates that Alzheimer's is caused by the buildup of "plaques" or "tangles" that block signals between brain cells. However, not everyone who displays symptoms has plaques, nor is the presence of plaques a surefire indicator of Alzheimer's. Like cancer, Alzheimer's appears to have multiple causes.

(WSJ image)

The improvement in imaging and chemical-analysis technologies has shifted Alzheimer's diagnosis toward objective "biomarkers" such as amyloid plaques and away from symptoms like memory loss and speech problems, which may have other causes. However, we're not there yet. A positive brain scan could needlessly alarm many people who won't get Alzheimer's. [bold added]

The likelihood that someone with a positive scan is going to progress to having clinical symptoms—called the positive predictive value—within the next few years is only about 40%, according to Duke’s Dr. Doraiswamy, who conducted one of the first studies on one of the brain-imaging tracers, florbetapir.

The advice from two years ago still holds: hang on for dear life. "The trick for us is to stay alive long enough to let the technology catch up."