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I recently came across this op-ed piece titled “My best friend had dementia and I had no idea” in the San Francisco Chronicle. It’s a heart-breaking story, that I’ve heard way too many times about that first moment where you realize that your loved one is not able to remember key people and events from their life.
In another personal essay about recognizing the signs titled “My Mother’s Dementia Symptoms Were Brushed Off For Too Long,” Meredith Burns describes struggling with their relationship through her 20s and 30s while her mother’s symptoms of Frontotemporal Dementia were written off as being “deeply depressed,” “a psychotic break,” and “post-menopausal.”
“92 percent of people experiencing MCI in the United States are not getting diagnosed at an early stage,” according to a pair of recent studies discussed in this WIRED magazine article. They note that many primary care doctors don’t see dementia patients and have low confidence in giving out this diagnosis. Stigma, race, and access to medical treatment are just some of the reasons early diagnosis is neglected. The article points out that doctors are reluctant to give a diagnosis when there is no treatment available.
But you and I are both here because we know there is a path to reversing cognitive decline.
In all cases, early detection is important for a better chance of reversing dementia and Alzheimer’s. So what can you do to test for early detection?
I have a 5-part series of videos on my TikTok channel where I discuss my recommendations for the top 10 tests to determine if you are at risk for developing dementia. These tests are part of my cognoscopy – a term coined by Dr. Dale Bredesen. The tests include a MOCA (Montreal Cognitive Assessment), a series of extensive blood panels including a full male or female panel, thyroid and metabolic panels, and testing for a variety of toxins such as heavy metals, mercury and environmental pollutants.
As for the future, many are looking towards blood testing as an easy and affordable option versus PET scans, MRIs and lumbar punctures. Blood Biomarkers are available to test for dementia.
There are tests for blood levels of beta amyloid and tau proteins available from Lab Corp, and AD-Detect by Quest Diagnostics tests these levels as well. This isn’t necessarily a predictor of Alzheimer’s, but a high accumulation is linked to Alzheimer’s disease.
In the U.K., the Blood Biomarker Challenge has just launched as a 5-year project to analyze the use of blood tests in memory care facilities in an effort to see if measuring p-tau217 can increase the rate of early diagnosis.
The indicators of cognitive decline are not obvious in the beginning, especially because we often hold dementia blindness – we just don’t want to see them. It is important to be open to the signs because with early detection, the chance to halt and reverse dementia is much stronger.
As I said in my recent interview for FoxNews Health, it’s a myth that there is nothing to be done for dementia. “It’s almost overwhelming how much you can do to optimize cognitive function at any stage of life.”
Thank you for being a part of my community where we can bring awareness and take action.
Warmly,
Dr. Heather Sandison
P.S. – The pre-order bonuses for my book, Reversing Alzheimer’s are now available! Get your copy today for immediate access to these bonuses worth over $300.
P.P.S. – If you’d like to listen to brand new interviews with me, last week I was a guest on these two fantastic podcasts – The Lindsey Elmore Show & Shrink Rap Radio.
