US EditionMost people say they want to know their risk for Alzheimer's dementia, fewer follow through
- A 2025 study from Washington University examined why fewer research volunteers follow through on learning their Alzheimer's dementia risk despite many wanting to know.
- This gap occurs amid recommendations by the National Academies to return test results even when no treatments exist, raising ethical concerns about causing anxiety.
- The study involved 274 Memory & Aging Project participants who underwent tests estimating five-year dementia risk and found 81% wanted theoretical results but only 60% accepted real results.
- Jessica Mozersky, the study's senior author, said 'people should have the option to not know' and noted lack of preventive treatments influenced many to decline risk information.
- These findings imply that offering risk information should respect individual choice, especially as returning unmodifiable results becomes more common in Alzheimer's research.
20 Articles
20 Articles
Do you want to know your risk of suffering from Alzheimer's?
Alzheimer’s disease, a neurodegenerative disorder that primarily affects people over 65 years of age, may be developing silently in the brain decades before its most obvious symptoms manifest. Dr. Daniel Amen, a renowned psychiatrist and brain imaging specialist, warned in a recently shared video on TikTok. His message is clear: preventing Alzheimer’s disease and other cognitive problems begins long before the disease gives its face.
Most people say they want to know their risk for Alzheimer's dementia, fewer follow through
A new study examines the choices healthy research volunteers make when given the opportunity to learn their risk of developing Alzheimer's disease dementia. The researchers found a large discrepancy between the percentage of participants who said they would like to learn their risk if such estimates became available and the percentage who followed through to learn those results when given the actual opportunity.
Alzheimer's risk: Many say they want answers, but fewer choose to know the truth
As researchers make progress in understanding how Alzheimer's disease develops, there are growing opportunities for healthy research participants to learn their risk of developing Alzheimer's disease dementia in the future. While many organizations often advocate for investigators to share risk estimates with individual participants, there are ethical concerns around doing so, given that there are no medical interventions to change that risk.
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