“Waiting for a diagnosis can be a horrible experience for patients and their families. If we could cut down the amount of time they have to wait, make diagnosis a simpler process, and reduce some of the uncertainty, that would help a great deal. Our new approach could also identify early-stage patients for clinical trials of new drug treatments or lifestyle changes, which is currently very hard to do.”
The new system spotted changes in areas of the brain not previously associated with Alzheimer’s disease, including the cerebellum (the part of the brain that coordinates and regulates physical activity) and the ventral diencephalon (linked to the senses, sight and hearing).
This opens up potential new avenues for research into these areas and their links to Alzheimer’s disease.
Doctor Rosa Sancho, Head of Research at Alzheimer’s Research UK, said: “Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia. We desperately need to see better ways to tackle Alzheimer’s, and this requires progress on a number of fronts. A key part of turning the tide is improving how we identify and diagnose people with the disease. This will enable patients to access support and available treatments, but also help to address some of the significant challenges in recruiting to dementia research, particularly clinical trials.