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Limitless: APOE revisited Jan 25 1:17pm | By Dona Locke (@DrDonaLocke)
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@rfherald

In reply to @DrDonaLocke, I have 1 copy of the e4 allele. I am 76 years old. I am a recovering engineer and remember some statistics. A ~ 25% chance of developing Alzheimer's is enough to keep me aware of any loss of acumen. A neuropsycology exam showing srandard memory loss for my age helps with acceptance, but not the frustration. Sleep disruption from BPH increases the probability of Alzheimer's and my anxiety. As time passes and no serious symptoms of Alzheimer's are revealed, I believe I am in the 75% group.

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Replies to "In reply to @DrDonaLocke, I have 1 copy of the e4 allele. I am 76 years..."
Dona Locke | @DrDonaLocke | Jan 27, 2023

@rfherald First off all, I laughed at your "recovering engineer" description. I appreciate the balanced thoughtfulness of your reflection above, that lands on hope.

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pb50 | @pb50 | Jan 25 1:17pm

I’m am 73 and have developed MCI. There is a question of whether some is related to general anesthesia of 8 months ago. So potentially some degree of it may ”clear” but I’m doubtful. I’m a statistically-based test designer to evaluate regulatory compliance by vocation.
My chief complaint is word retrieval. Not just names, though frankly I haven’t been very good at remembering people’s names for my whole life. But I’m also aware I am experiencing a more generalized loss of acuity. I feel executive function is intact, but not necessarily supporting functions. So I know that to solve a gap in compliance the necessary requirements are … but I may not retrieve what they are called or specific interdependence.

So I’m trying to learn what my state of brain health is.

Like you, I have one copy of the APOE4 variant.

MRI shows
Only age-consistent changes and no atrophy of brain volume beyond that.

The new ATN blood Test for presence of Alzheimer’s pathology revealed:

Reduced Beta Amyloid 42/40 ratio, and elevated p-Tau-181, has been associated with presence of Alzheimer's Disease pathology.

So two views look ok to good, one is worrisome. With my profound family history of Alzheimer’s, it’s more than worrisome.

I haven’t had the psychological testing or a PET scan. But I’m not one that doesn’t want to know. I want to know everything there is to know.

I don’t want drug trials but I would want to be in trials that are more procedural. That said, I have comorbidities like RA that would likely preclude me.

So I’ve spent the last 18 months retiring, planning my estate docs and designating responsibilities. So I am free to control what I can for as long as I can. Try to exercise and eat well and try to keep laying down new neuronal pathways.

Glad to find this discussion. Family members are kind but don’t really want to discuss this.

Thanks for ‘listening’
And if you haven’t watched it, this was the most exciting research result I could imagine.
https://rni.wvumedicine.org/60minutes/

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