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Blood Tests that Detect Alzheimer's Disease are On the Horizon

Blood tests that can detect amyloid plaque and tau, the proteins involved in dementia, will soon be available. Right now, the only way to diagnose Alzheimer's is with a PET scan, a lumbar puncture or an autopsy. "And now we're at the point that we have these blood tests that are highly accurate to identify the building up of the proteins that are the hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease," said Dani Cabral, MD, an assistant professor of Neurology and Psychiatry at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix.

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About the College

Founded in 2007, the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix inspires and trains exemplary physicians, scientists and leaders to optimize health and health care in Arizona and beyond. By cultivating collaborative research locally and globally, the college accelerates discovery in a number of critical areas — including cancer, stroke, traumatic brain injury and cardiovascular disease. Championed as a student-centric campus, the college has graduated more than 800 physicians, all of whom received exceptional training from nine clinical partners and more than 2,700 diverse faculty members. As the anchor to the Phoenix Bioscience Core, which is projected to have an economic impact of $3.1 billion by 2025, the college prides itself on engaging with the community, fostering education, inclusion, access and advocacy.