Interesting and important work, no doubt.
I do wonder if I’d like to know if dementia, or Alzheimer’s is coming my way. For me, it’s similar to the question of knowing the exact day I’m going to die. I do think there’s value for those around me, no question. And if there’s a treatment, of course, it’d be critical to know so I can maximize my chances and my quality of life.
But there’s a psychic toll to knowing something is coming for me, something relentless, dark, and inevitable.
Would you want to know?
I had a blood test to see if I have prostate cancer. It’s routine for anyone over 50. It came back marginal, so I went to have more tests that also came back marginal. Then I had a biopsy, that showed that I had a tiny cancerous tumour. I had radiotherapy every day for a month, and now four months later I have been declared cancer-free.
Given that there are mental exercises that you can do that have been shown to at least delay the onset of dementia, I think the earlier you know about it, the better your chances of giving yourself a better quality of life, and if there are treatments that become available in the future then you will be able to perhaps do something about it.
Anything to do with health, it’s always better to know sooner rather than later.
As for knowing your exact date of death – nobody will ever know that. If mine came back saying I would die when I’m 90, then I could do anything in the meantime, knowing that I wouldn’t die for years. Playing hopscotch on the motorway, skydiving without a parachute, become an amateur astronaut – no need to wear a space suit, because I can’t die for decades.
So that’s just ridiculous.
But with health issues – the sooner you know, the better.
.. IF you can do something about them. If you can’t, then I don’t think there’s much value in knowing.