NEWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS
A New Blood Test for Alzheimer s Disease in Persons
with Cognitive Impairment
Posted July 27, 2025
There is a new FDA-approved blood test: the Lumipulse G pTau217/ beta-Amyloid 1-42 Plasma Ratio. It assesses pTau217 and beta-amyloid 1-42, which are two proteins in human plasma. [Plasma is a human blood component.] So, this test provides a simpler method of evaluation that may be preferable to use of spinal puncture (to test cerebrospinal fluid) and/or specific brain imaging (PET) for some patients who have cognitive impairment. The FDA granted the approval for this new test to Fujirebio Diagnostics, Inc.
Regarding Lecanemab for Early Stages of Alzheimer’s Disease
posted January 8, 2023
Announced in The New England Journal of Medicine on January 5, 2023, lecanemab is the newest potential treatment for Alzheimer’s Disease to be making its way through clinical trials. Initial results have been favorable as the drug moves through U.S. FDA Clinical Trials, with a hope that it will garner full approval at the beginning of 2024.
Researchers reported a 27% reduction in the rate of cognitive decline in those who received lecanemab infusions compared to patients who received a placebo (an inert infusion with no lecanemab). Safety continues to be a concern, as is true with AduhelmTM (which is already FDA approved). Both of these monoclonoal antibodies seem to carry risks like brain swelling and a build-up of fluid in the brain, both of which appear on brain scans as ARIA (amyloid-related imaging abnormalities). While AduhelmTM seemed to lead to more conflicting findings, results from lecanemab trials appear to more clearly indicate benefits in slowing cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s Disease.
How can a caregiver cope with sundowning?
We have received some questions about sundowning.
Overall,
this phenomenon is associated with late-day confusion and disorientation among
people with dementia.
Here are links to a couple of brief videos about sundowning: