Can a Blood Test Predict Dementia?
A recent Daily Mail report said "Simple blood test … could predict
if you'll suffer dementia."
The story came from a study carried out by researchers from King’s
College London and published in the peer-reviewed scientific
journal Genome Biology.
The NHS claims the study received financial support from a number of sources,
including InnoMed (Innovative Medicines in Europe), XRGenomics Ltd, Alzheimer’s
Research UK, and The John and Lucille van Geest Foundation.
The article is available here.
Samples
Taking samples of muscle and
tissue from young and old adults, the study aimed to identify a genetic score
that could indicate peoples’ biological age. There was a set of genetic markers
that could differentiate between young and old samples.
Using other tissue samples, including blood from people with and without
Alzheimer's
disease, the authors further tested this "healthy ageing gene
score". They found the score was lower in those with Alzheimer's. Overall,
this score is suggested as a marker for healthy ageing.
Experimental
However, the NHS says “it is important to realise this study is in the
early experimental stages and the score has so far only been tested in small
groups of people with known disease status. It is not known how well it could
predict future disease development.
“There is also the issue of the psychological impact of being told you
are of ‘older’ biological age, or may have a higher
risk of dementia or other chronic diseases – especially if there is
little you can do to prevent this.”
Media Coverage
The UK media gave the study extensive coverage, and the NHS believes this was generally premature. They say “the headlines could suggest that people can go to their GP and request a blood test to determine their age and risk of dementia, which is certainly not the case.
“This study is in the early stages and there would be many things to
consider before suggesting this could be a screening test.
“The papers largely ignored the issue of whether being told you had a
biological age older than your years, or had higher risk of dementia, would be
welcome news.”
Research
There are steps
you can take to reduce your risk of dementia and other chronic
diseases, such as living a healthier lifestyle. The NHS is also inviting people
to sign up to take part in trials on NHS
Join Dementia Research.
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