21/03/2026
At the Global Health Innovation Summit - 2026, Dr. Pessanha emphasized that APOE4 should be understood as a genetic susceptibility factor rather than a deterministic gene. Carrying APOE4 increases the probability of developing Alzheimer’s disease, but it does not define an individual’s outcome.
Importantly, she highlighted the distinction between late-onset and early-onset Alzheimer’s disease. While late-onset Alzheimer’s is influenced by risk genes such as APOE4, early-onset familial Alzheimer’s is typically driven by rare, deterministic mutations in genes such as APP, PSEN1, and PSEN2, which are strongly associated with disease development at a younger age.
This perspective reinforces the importance of prevention and personalized approaches, including lifestyle interventions such as cardiovascular health, nutrition, and physical activity. It also underscores that Alzheimer’s disease is not a uniform condition, but a complex spectrum with diverse biological mechanisms and clinical trajectories.