Future of diagnosis

Researchers are working on new diagnostic tools that may enable doctors to diagnose Alzheimer's dementia earlier in the course of the disease, when symptoms are very mild or before symptoms even appear. One such tool is a PET scan that can detect tau, the other hallmark abnormal protein in Alzheimer's dementia.

Scientists are investigating a number of disease markers and diagnostic tests, such as genes, disease-related proteins and imaging procedures, which may accurately and reliably indicate whether you have Alzheimer's dementia and how much the disease has progressed. However, more research on these tests is necessary.