Shortages of Specialists to Screen and Diagnose Early Stages of Neurocognitive Diseases Are Part of the Looming Problem

A recent study by the Rand Corporation points to related problems with diagnosis AND  treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease and other neurocognitive disorders. Even as there is a growing need for effective treatment, there are “too few medical specialists to diagnose patients who may have early signs of Alzheimer’s” and thus become eligible for therapies that might slow or or halt progression of such diseases.   From the Rand news release:  

“While significant effort is being put into developing treatments to slow or block the progression of Alzheimer’s dementia, little work has been done to get the medical system ready for such an advancement,” said Jodi Liu, lead author of the study and a policy researcher at RAND, a nonprofit research organization. “While there is no certainty an Alzheimer’s therapy will be approved soon, our work suggests that health care leaders should begin thinking about how to respond to such a breakthrough.”

 

An estimated 5.5 million Americans live with Alzheimer’s dementia today, with the number projected to increase to 11.6 million by 2040.

 

Advanced clinical trials are underway for at least 10 investigational therapies that have shown promise in slowing or blocking development of Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers say the progress provides guarded optimism that a disease-modifying therapy could become available for routine use within a few years.

 

Liu and her team examined the pathway patients would likely take to receive an Alzheimer’s therapy and created a model to simulate the pressures that such an approved therapy would put on the health care system.

 

The analysis assumes that a therapy is approved for use beginning in 2020 and screening would begin in 2019, although researchers stress that the date was chosen only as a scenario for the model, not as a prediction of when a therapy may be approved.

 

Under such a scenario, about 71 million Americans aged 55 and older would have to be screened for signs of mild cognitive impairment. After follow-up examinations and imaging to confirm evidence of Alzheimer’s, the RAND analysis estimates 2.4 million people ultimately could be recommended for treatment.

For additional analysis, see The Washington Post’s article from its Business Section, We’re So Unprepared for Finding An Alzheimer’s Treatment. 

Special thanks to George Washington Law Professor (and friend) Naomi Cahn for making sure we did not miss this item.