Detect Alzheimer's Symptoms Early with a Blood Test, Can It?
Blood Test for Alzheimer's Detection
Recently, a study was conducted to predict the symptoms of Alzheimer's by measuring changes in blood protein levels, called neurofilament light chains (NFL). Researchers in the journal Nature Medicine revealed that any increase in protein levels could be an early sign of a disease risk.
In this case a blood test is needed to determine the presence of markers in the blood that gives an indication of the loss of nerve cells in the brain. The lead researcher, Mathias Jucker, who is a professor of neurological disease cell biology at the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases also said that the more neurofilaments a person has in the blood, the higher the risk of brain damage that will occur.
Even so, until now there is still no effective treatment for Alzheimer's. However, Jucker said that blood testing is a process that must be tested in clinical studies to enable researchers to monitor the effectiveness of new treatments before patients begin showing symptoms of Alzheimer's by measuring how protein levels are affected.
Alzheimer's symptoms
Alzheimer's disease begins at least a decade, maybe even 20 years, before general symptoms begin to appear. This statement was expressed by Jucker, director of the board at the Hertie Clinical Brain Research Institute at the University of Tübingen.
However, until now there are no tests that doctors can use to determine exactly whether someone is at risk of developing Alzheimer's disease in the future. One theory that is widely believed is that the disease is driven by the production and deposition of beta-amyloid plaques between neurons in the brain.
Of the many changes in the brain that precede the appearance of Alzheimer's symptoms, one significant change is the accumulation of NfL in the blood before other symptoms appear, Jucker said.
Jucker's team also measured the rate of changes in NfL by using blood tests on 405 people from all over the world who were registered in Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer's Network. They measured levels of NfL protein in participants through blood samples, brain imaging, and cognitive tests every two and a half years for the past seven years. Until now, research is still ongoing.
So far, patients carrying gene mutations that cause Alzheimer's disease have been found to have elevated NfL levels compared to other groups, which consist of 162 family members without mutations.
These results can indicate the existence of indications that we can predict the possibility of Alzheimer's symptoms with blood tests and measure the protein content in them. Jucker also revealed that through cognitive testing and brain imaging, NfL levels have also been shown to correlate with cognitive decline and brain shrinkage.
Even so, Jucker warned that the test was not specific just to predict Alzheimer's disease. The reason is that higher levels of neurofilament can indeed indicate brain damage, but this can also be caused by brain injury due to accidents.
Also, understand that this is not the first blood test developed to diagnose the disease early. Previous studies have shown options for detecting Alzheimer's disease in the early stages.
A 2018 study also examined the presence and levels of beta amyloid in a person's brain by observing the condition of patients with various levels of health, ranging from being healthy, having mild cognitive impairment, to those suffering from Alzheimer's disease.
Alzheimer's treatment
Overall, research on Alzheimer's treatment and prevention still needs further research. Until now, Alzheimer's has not been cured. The only treatment that can be done is to reduce symptoms, relieve complaints, slow the progression of the disease, and help sufferers to be able to live life as independently as possible.
In addition, treatment in the form of drug administration is also done by prescribing for patients with Alzheimer's. Some of these drugs, including rivastigmine, donepezil, galantamine, and memantine. These drugs are proven to be able to relieve or withstand the appearance of dementia symptoms by the process of increasing levels of certain substances in the brain
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