ROANOKE, Va. – For families caring for loved ones with Alzheimer’s, life can change in what seems like an instant.
For Lynn Young, that was three years ago.
“It’s just a sad process, it’s a sad disease,” Young said.
She started noticing signs in her dad, but getting answers wasn’t easy.
It took several months to see a specialist, but eventually - doctors confirmed what Young already knew.
“I said, ‘What are you telling me?’ and she was like, ‘Well, he does have a form of dementia, so things are probably going to get worse,’” Young said.
But Young’s wait time is on the shorter end of the spectrum.
Geriatric specialist Dr. Amy Paul tells me people can wait over a year to see a specialist and start tests - and even then, the tests are only about 70% accurate.
But that’s all changing.
“You can now diagnose someone with a blood test with 90% accuracy,” Paul said.
The test isn’t FDA approved - yet.
But Paul tells 10 News it shouldn’t take long, and once it’s approved, there is a whole new world of possibilities.
“Most times you find that patients are just seen by a specialist who makes that determination, but it’s been shown that primary care doctors can use this, as well as specialists,” Paul said.
“How accessible do you think this is realistically going to be for people?” 10 News Reporter Abbie Coleman asked.
“Having something that sits in a doctor’s office, that’s just like getting an A1C or cholesterol level, suddenly makes it more accessible for everybody,” Paul said.
Paul tells us the Alzheimer’s Association is advocating to keep the price tag low, and being available in a primary care office opens up options for insurance.
“We kind of have to all take care of each other. And if things are so expensive for the people living with the disease, everyone around them suffers,” Paul said.
“How much easier would that have made your experience?” Coleman asked Young, about the blood test.
“Oh that would have been wonderful. If they could have done that. Then he could have given me some answers instead of us kind of playing a game for a while in the beginning,” Young said.