The Effects of Low-Dose Radiation Therapy in Patients With Mild-to-Moderate Alzheimer's Dementia: An Interim Analysis of a Pilot Study
June 2023
in “
Radiation oncology journal
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TLDR Low-dose radiation therapy may improve brain function in some Alzheimer's patients and is generally well-tolerated.
In a pilot study investigating the effects of low-dose radiotherapy (LDRT) on patients with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's dementia, 20% of patients showed neurological improvement 6 months after treatment. One patient notably improved across all domains of the Seoul Neuropsychological Screening Battery II, and another showed improvements in cognitive scores and functions. The treatment, which consisted of six sessions of 0.5 Gy each, was generally well-tolerated, with only two patients reporting mild nausea and hair loss. The study suggests that LDRT may be a tolerable intervention for Alzheimer's disease, but emphasizes the need for a larger-scale randomized controlled trial with a longer follow-up period to conclusively determine its efficacy.