alt Hacker NewsThese tests are more or less useless because there's no treatment anyway so knowing about it a long time in advance will not lead to any substantial gain. Even slowing the disease isn't within the realm of today's technology. Today's pharmaceutical companies are close to quacks as far as Alzheimer is concerned. We know next to nothing about its origins or even how the disease progresses.
The only thing you gain is giving people more time to worry and despair.
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I think I'd want to know.
It would affect my financial and estate planning, and how I'd like to navigate the disease's progression.
This is an infuriatingly clueless comment. It gives nothing? It allows people to set their affairs in order, and that is an invaluable thing.
Alzheimers can lead to all kinds of other issues like impulsivity, or aggressiveness. People gambling away their life savings, not knowing that they are even doing it. Doctors unable to intervene due to rights around patient autonomy. All of this has big consequences in the lives of those affected.
These tests are not useless, but I’d agree (from personal experience) that it’s far from clear that everyone should take one.
There’s a degenerative genetic disease that runs in my family that for various reasons we only found out about ten years ago. To get the test done in the UK for it, you have to go to mandatory genetic counselling where they try to convince you not to get it done. Of four siblings, the two of us who thought initially we’d definitely get it done, we’ve not, and the two who were sure they wouldn’t, have done.
They try and convince you not to get it done so you don’t end up confusing being tired one morning or tripping with “oh my God it’s starting”.
Everyone should get their affairs in order, regularly, without needing a test, if they care about their loved ones.
Earlier diagnosis, or at least suspected diagnosis, could make a difference in studying progression, origin, etc.
Imagine the test is 100% accurate: if you gave it to a group of people, you could then try to make interventions earlier, capture more data about lifestyle before symptoms, etc.