About one in 10 people in the UK aged 70 and over may have brain changes linked to Alzheimer’s disease, according to the first large, population-based study of its kind.
The research, published in Nature, used a blood test on nearly 11,500 people and found markers associated with Alzheimer’s, though this does not mean those affected have dementia. The results suggest more than 1 million people could meet NHS criteria for anti-amyloid treatment, far higher than previous estimates.
Researchers say the findings could transform early detection, but warn that current treatments are expensive and not widely available on the NHS.
