DEMENTIA EARLY DIAGNOSIS HOPE

Blood test trial may lead to quicker care

- BY MARTIN BAGOT Health Editor

A BLOOD test used to detect dementia is being offered to patients in a trial amid hopes it could lead to routine screening.

Drugs known to slow the disease only work if offered in its earliest stages but almost all sufferers are diagnosed late by the NHS.

The test has already been effective in looking for the signs of dementia but researchers want to know whether giving it to patients near the start of an assessment for memory problems would help to guide diagnosis and treatment.