About one in 10 people in the UK aged 70 and over may have brain changes linked to Alzheimer’s disease, according to a large population-based study published in Nature.
The findings are not a diagnosis but suggest that more than 1 million people could meet NHS criteria for anti-amyloid treatment, far more than current estimates. Researchers analysed blood samples from nearly 11,500 randomly selected participants using a p-tau217 biomarker test, which can detect Alzheimer’s-related changes early.
The prevalence rose with age, from under 8% in people in their 50s and 60s to around two-thirds of those over 90. Experts say the results could transform early detection, but warn that current treatments are expensive and not widely available on the NHS.
