Low Doses of Radiation May Improve Quality of Life for Those With Severe Alzheimer's

A Baycrest-Sunnybrook pilot study published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease found that low doses of radiation administered to people with severe Alzheimer's disease appeared to improve their behavior and cognition within days, reports EurekAlert . "Each dose of radiation stimulates our natural protection systems to work harder — to produce more antioxidants that prevent oxidative damage, to repair more DNA damage, and to destroy more mutated cells," said Jerry Cuttler, a retired Atomic Energy of Canada scientist. The study followed up a 2015 case report about a patient in hospice with Alzheimer's, who showed significant improvements in cognition, speech, movement, and appetite after several radiation treatments to her brain. The authors of the new study gave four individuals living with severe Alzheimer's three computed tomography-administered treatments of low-dose radiation, each spaced 14 days apart. Three of the four subjects showed improvements within a day of the first treatment, with their relatives noting increased alertness and responsiveness, recognition of loved ones, mobility, social engagement, and mood.