Good news (I think)

ltbub0418 · June 26

My Dad was originally diagnosed with MCI Stage 3 and then the doctor upgraded him to Stage 4. He just had his MRI & blood work done. No proteins found in his blood and the MRI was not bad at all. He had Mild changes consistent with his age & Hypertension history. The doctor wants to give him another cognitive test to possibly drop him back to MCI Stage 3 !!! I know this disease is horrible and good news is few and far between but this was an unexpected ray of hope that this disease hasn’t progressed as rapidly as we feared.
Has anyone else experienced this ?

Thanks so much !!!

JulietteBee · June 28

You are so correct! Good news is indeed so few and so far. We should always look for and capture any ray of hope or glimmer of happiness.

In response to your question, I have not. Cognitive changes, apart from those caused by things that can be remedied, typically are progressive.

Not to steal your joy, but for me to personally accept that as good news for MY pwd, I would have to know if the staging was done by a qualified specialist, and based on industry approved testing.

Reason I say that is because my mom's PCP, after years of requesting to have my mom tested, finally administered the MMSE. He classified her as having "Early stage dementia/mild cognitive impairment."

Mom finally got sent to a neurologist who personally viewed her MRI scans and ordered a neuro-psych exam. Mom's MRI revealed a completely whited out brain, indicative of Vascular Dementia involving her whole brain. Her neuro-psych exam reveals she has moderate to severe dementia with severely impacted functioning. Her Alzheimers specify blood test indicates she has Alzheimers along with the Vascular Dementia. Bottom line is, mom's PCP's staging was wrong and his delay in testing cost her the benefit of early treatment

caregiving daughter · June 29

Your dad is fortunate to have such a loving family. My understanding is that a neuro-psychologist would make a diagnosis of Alzheimer's, Vascular, or another type of dementia based on extensive behavioral testing. As an earlier poster mentioned, they can also co-exist; however, both types of dementia progress in different ways, e.g. gradual decline or plateaus and then a step down. The key is to keep your loved one safe and understand if there is medication available that can slow the symptoms of the illness.

Good news (I think)

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