PET imaging can cost more than $3,000 a scan and is not usually covered by insurance.
What Is Alzheimer’s?
According to the NIA, as many as 5.5 million Americans may have Alzheimer’s-induced dementia.
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It also checks for a protein called ApoE, a well-known risk factor for Alzheimers.
“It doesnt prove it; it suggests that thats likely the cause.
The test is only for patients over the age of 60 who are experiencing cognitive impairment symptoms.
Clinicians can order the test for patients, but it is not available for consumers to purchase directly.
However, Holtzman says that C2N Diagnostics is in the process of obtaining FDA approval for PrecivityAD.
We know that its only been really tested in a few 100 individuals,” Edelmayer says.
“Right now, it has little data thats been presented from individuals of underrepresented populations.
Masurkar agrees that more information is needed to better understand the tests accuracy.
Mitka M.Pet imaging for Alzheimer’s disease: are its benefits worth the cost?.JAMA.
C2N Diagnostics, LLC.Alzheimers Breakthrough: C2N First to Offer a Widely Accessible Blood TestPrecivityAD.
National Institutes of Health, National Insitute on Aging.How Is Alzheimer’s Treated?
National Institutes of Health, National Insitute on Aging.Preventing Alzheimer’s Disease: What Do We Know?
(Leshner AI, Landis S, Stroud C, Downey A, eds.
).
