Technology Boost For Blood Tests Set To Revolutionise Dementia Diagnosis
The Government has pledged £2 million to boost on-going research that aims to diagnose dementia quicker and more accurately than current methods.
The new funding will allow researchers to incorporate digital assessments into the Real Word Dementia Outcomes (READ-OUT) study and explore how accurate and reliable blood tests are for different groups of people who have been referred to a memory clinic.
The first participants were recruited earlier this year.
Thanks to the new funding, the READ-OUT study can now include a series of online tests. These will measure memory and thinking and take less than 10 minutes to complete.
Combining blood tests with quick and easy digital assessments could lead to a faster and more accurate diagnosis for dementia than current methods, which are pen and paper tests, brain scans, and sometimes a lumbar puncture.
“It’s fantastic to see studies like READ-OUT that are already identifying blood tests now including additional digital cognitive assessments to see if these are an effective way to spot early symptoms of dementia,” says Dr Susan Kohlhaas, Executive Director of Research and Partnerships at Alzheimer’s Research UK.
Currently it can take up to a year – or even longer in deprived areas – for someone to get a diagnosis once they come forward with concerns about their memory and thinking.
“This is simply not good enough,” says Dr Kohlhaas, “That’s why we need to develop, test and roll out innovative ways of diagnosing dementia within the NHS, to make the process quicker and more seamless for people.”
What are digital tests for dementia?
“Digital tests have the potential to give doctors much more information compared to traditional pen and paper assessments,” Dr Kohlhaas explains. “They can tell us how someone is approaching the test rather than just looking at how quickly and accurately someone completes the test.”
Experts say that in the future, digital tests taken at home or in a GP surgery could be linked to the NHS App, helping streamline referrals to memory clinics. This would enable people to get a diagnosis sooner and access the support they need without unnecessary delays.
Prof Vanessa Raymont, at the University of Oxford and who is leading the study is keen to promote the opportunity for people to get involved.
“This is especially exciting given READ-OUT is keen to recruit people who have other health problems and from ethnic groups that we haven’t been able to involve in research before,” says Prof Raymont.
“Our approach will allow us to understand if such a combination of tests could be helpful and cost effective to roll out across NHS memory clinics and beyond,”
Dr Kohlhaas adds, “A priority for this government must be to keep up the momentum we’ve seen in dementia research to ensure people in the UK see the benefits of progress that’s being made.”
