Doctor working with Bois Forte to address disparities in dementia research

By WDIO

Bois Forte working with doctors on dementia research

A look at how doctors are working to address disparities in dementia research with a project with Bois Forte.

About 300 members of the Bois Forte band are part of a research project focused on dementia.

Dr. Will Mantyh and his team spent time up at the reservation in 2021. They are focused on the blood test developed for Alzheimer’s, and making sure it works in Native populations, but they also asked other questions related to risk factors and more.

“It’s been really rewarding,” he told us. “And we have some preliminary data that’s been published.”

This all started when he found out that during development of the Alzheimer’s blood test, there were 40,000 volunteers. But only two of them were Native American.

He’ll be presenting during a webinar on Friday, hosted by the Alzheimer’s Association MN-ND Chapter.

Sign up to attend bit.ly/ALZLearnNov2024 or by calling the Association’s 24/7 Helpline at 800.272.3900

For more resources for Native Americans and Alzheimer’s: https://www.alz.org/help-support/resources/native-americans