Willingness to Undergo a Risky Treatment to Improve Cognition Among Persons With Cognitive Impairment Who Received an Amyloid PET Scan

Abstract

Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text. Objective: To evaluate determinants of willingness to accept a treatment to return memory to normal among persons with cognitive impairment who received an amyloid positron emission tomography (PET) scan and their care partner and discordance in risk taking. Methods: Using data from CARE-IDEAS (n=1872 dyads), a supplement of the Imaging Dementia–Evidence for Amyloid Scanning study, we predicted scan recipient’s willingness to accept a risky treatment, the risk care partners believed their care recipient would accept, and discordance in these perceptions. Results: Scan recipients were willing to accept a treatment with a 27.94% (SD=34.36) risk of death. Care partners believed their care recipient would accept a 29.68% (SD=33.74) risk of death; thus, overestimating risk acceptance by 1.74 (SD=41.88) percentage points. A positive amyloid PET scan was associated with willingness to accept greater risk. Poorer functioning of the care recipient was associated with care partners believing their care recipient would accept more risk. The amyloid PET scan result was not significantly associated with discordance, but poorer functioning of the care recipient resulted in care partners overestimating risk. Conclusions: Scan recipients were willing to accept a treatment with a high risk of death. Discordance was affected by scan recipient’s having poorer functioning.