MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
Older Americans say they want to know if they are in the early stages of Alzheimer's, and they would happily take a blood test to find out. That's according to a new national survey by the Alzheimer's Association. NPR's Jon Hamilton reports the results show how attitudes toward the disease are changing.
JON HAMILTON, BYLINE: Historically, people experiencing problems with memory and thinking have been hesitant to learn the cause. Elizabeth Edgerly is a clinical psychologist who directs community programs for the Alzheimer's Association.
ELIZABETH EDGERLY: People would often say, well, gosh, I wouldn't want to know, or why would I want to know?
HAMILTON: But Edgerly says the association's survey of 1,700 Americans 45 and older shows that's no longer the case.
EDGERLY: Seventy-nine percent said that they would like to know if they had Alzheimer's before the symptoms appear or at least before the symptoms affect their daily activities.
HAMILTON: One reason may be that it's now easier to find out. Just a few years ago, it took a PET scan or spinal tap to confirm the presence of sticky amyloid plaques in the brain. Now a simple blood test can provide the answer. Edgerly says survey respondents were enthusiastic about this approach.
EDGERLY: Nine out of 10 people said, yeah, I would take a blood test, and especially if I know that if I have Alzheimer's, there's something I can do about it.
HAMILTON: Like drug treatment. Most respondents said they would take a medication to slow down the disease, even if it had risks. There are now two drugs like that on the market, and Edgerly says that gives people another reason to get a diagnosis while they are still capable of making their own decisions.
EDGERLY: Now, people can speak for themselves. They can articulate what they'd like for their future. They can decide whether they want to try treatments. It's really a very different situation.
HAMILTON: Alzheimer's remains a formidable disease, but Dr. Nathaniel Chin, a geriatrician at the University of Wisconsin, says people living with Alzheimer's disease are more optimistic now that drug treatment is possible.
NATHANIEL CHIN: Even if it doesn't stop the disease in its tracks, I think it tells people that we're making progress, and they want to know if they potentially could have this therapy or maybe the next therapy or two therapies down the road.
HAMILTON: Chin says the survey results are in line with what he's seeing in his own practice.
CHIN: I don't think people are as fearful as they have been in the past. I think there's a desire to just know what's happening to our bodies.
HAMILTON: Chin says many doctors, though, are still skeptical about drug treatment, which offers only a modest benefit. As a result, he says, many are still reluctant to urge their patients to get tested.
CHIN: Some patients are ahead of their doctors in this regard. They are thinking about this. They want this information, and they're going to ask about it.
HAMILTON: Chin says he does offer blood tests to patients with cognitive problems, and he expects the tests to become increasingly common. But that's likely to bring some new challenges. For example, many health professionals are not trained to counsel people who have just learned they have Alzheimer's. And Chin says a positive test result in someone's medical record has the potential to jeopardize their job or health insurance.
CHIN: There are protections for people who learn their genetic information, but as of now, there are not protections for people who are learning if you are cognitively unimpaired or cognitively healthy.
HAMILTON: Chin says now that more people are finding out, it's up to groups, including the Alzheimer's Association, to push for those protections.
Jon Hamilton, NPR News. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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