CANBERRA, Sept. 20 (Xinhua) -- Australian researchers have developed a simple and cheap blood test capable of predicting a person's risk of developing Alzheimer's disease up to 20 years in advance.
In a study published on Tuesday, a team of physicists from Canberra's Australian National University (ANU) revealed that by using artificial intelligence (AI), the new test can analyze proteins in blood and identify signs of early neurodegeneration.
Patrick Kluth, co-author of the research from the ANU Research School of Physics, said in a media release that the test could be done by general practitioners and deliver near-instant results on whether a patient is showing signs of developing Alzheimer's up to 20 years before symptoms show.
"Currently, Alzheimer's is mostly diagnosed based on evidence of mental deterioration, by which stage the disease has already seriously damaged the brain," he said.
"Early detection, vital for effective treatment, normally involves invasive and expensive hospital procedures such as a lumbar puncture, which can be physically and mentally taxing for patients."
The test works by inserting a silicon chip -- on which a small amount of a patient's blood has been placed -- into a portable device, which then uses an AI algorithm to search for signs of proteins that indicate early-onset Alzheimer's.
Alzheimer's disease is a type of dementia that causes the degeneration of brain cells, destroying a patient's memory and thinking skills.
According to the World Health Organization, Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia, accounting for up to 70 percent of cases.
A report published by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare in February estimated that there were 401,300 Australians living with dementia in 2022, and that the figure could more than double to 849,300 by 2058.
There are currently no known treatments or cures for Alzheimer's, but ANU PhD researcher and study co-author Shankar Dutt said an early warning could improve health outcomes.
"If that person can find out their risk level that far in advance, then it gives them plenty of time to start making positive lifestyle changes and adopt medication strategies that may help slow down the progression of the disease," he said in the media release. ■
