Plain-English guides to current research on Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, grouped by the questions families ask most. We link to the original reporting or study so you can read the details yourself.
Updated October 2026. Research news is not medical advice; talk with a doctor about your own situation.
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A short monthly email with the month’s most important CTE research and news, in plain English, with links to the original sources. We may also send an occasional special alert when a major study is published. Free, and you can unsubscribe at any time.
Promising research
New developments that are getting attention, with a plain statement of what each one does, and does not, mean for diagnosing or treating CTE.
FDA approves a tau PET scan (Tauklarify)
What it is: A brain-scan tracer approved for adults with memory or thinking problems who are being evaluated for Alzheimer’s disease. It shows tau tangles, a protein also involved in CTE.
What it isn’t: Approved to diagnose CTE. The approval does not mention CTE; research on tau scans for CTE is separate and ongoing.
Blood tests and brain scans to diagnose CTE in living people
What it is: Several research teams (including Boston University, UCLA, Cleveland Clinic and the University of Toronto) are testing scan tracers and blood markers in clinical studies.
What it isn’t: Available to patients yet. CTE can still be confirmed only after death.
Emory clinical trial for former football players
What it is: A small Phase 2 trial testing an approved anti-inflammatory drug in former players with depression or memory symptoms. It is recruiting.
What it isn’t: A proven treatment for CTE. It is an early test of whether the drug helps symptoms.
Diagnosing CTE in living people
Today CTE can only be confirmed by examining the brain after death. These are the efforts to change that.
New Hope for Diagnosing C.T.E.
An overview of the scans and blood tests now in research studies.
The race to develop a CTE test for living people
How brain imaging could one day identify CTE during life.
To detect CTE while alive, a test for another brain disease may help
Researchers look at whether a test developed for Alzheimer’s could help identify CTE.
NIH funds $15 million effort to diagnose CTE in living people
A study of 350 men, including former college and pro football players, using brain scans and blood tests. It is research, not a test available today.
Experimental brain scan tested in former NFL players
A small, early study of a tau-imaging tracer in 29 former players and six donated brains. Larger studies are needed before it could be used to diagnose CTE.
Who is at risk
What research shows about how common CTE is and what raises the risk: years of play, number of head impacts, and the age contact sports begin.
At least 1 in 4 former NFL players who died during 2016–21 had CTE
Researchers studied the 1,712 former NFL players who died between 2008 and 2021. Because donated brains are not a random sample, they report a range, with at least 1 in 4 likely affected.
CTE rare among people with isolated brain injuries
A Mount Sinai study links CTE to repeated head impacts rather than a single injury.
Early brain changes in younger contact-sport athletes
A study of brain changes in younger athletes exposed to repeated head impacts.
More years of hockey linked to higher CTE odds
In 77 donated brains of hockey players, the odds of CTE rose about 34% with each extra year played. Donors are not a random sample of all players.
Symptoms, dementia & mental health
How CTE may affect memory, mood and behavior, and how it relates to dementia and other brain diseases.
NIH study ties dementia risk to severe CTE
A study of brain donors found that advanced CTE was strongly linked to dementia.
Former NFL players more likely to die of ALS, dementia and Parkinson’s
Research on how often former players die of neurodegenerative diseases.
Suicide rate among NFL players has risen
A study of suicide among former players. Researchers note many factors are involved.
Nearly 1 in 5 former NFL players say they were told they have CTE
A survey of men who played in the 1988 NFL season. Because CTE cannot be confirmed in life, this likely means a clinician saw signs consistent with it.
Treatment, trials & claims to be careful about
There is no proven treatment for CTE yet. These are trials underway, early findings, and reasons for caution.
First trial targeting athletes at risk for CTE is recruiting
A Phase 2 trial for former football players with symptoms.
Red light therapy shows early promise
A small early study. Larger trials are needed before it can be recommended.
Fish oil may increase CTE risk after brain injury
Laboratory research. Talk with a doctor before taking supplements after a head injury.
Youth sports & prevention
Research to help parents and coaches decide when and how children play contact sports.
Reconsider when children start playing tackle football
Research on the age children are first exposed to tackle football.
Is football too dangerous for kids’ brains?
What scientists are learning about youth football and brain health.
Players’ union recommends no heading for children under 12
England’s professional footballers’ union calls for limits on heading the ball.
Beyond football
CTE is linked to repeated head impacts in many settings: other sports, military service, and domestic violence.
31 former rugby league players found to have CTE
An Australian brain bank study of rugby league players.
Soccer headers raise brain-injury markers
A study of blood markers after heading the ball.
Brain injury among U.S. troops
Concerns about the long-term toll of blast and brain injuries on service members.
Severe CTE found in a Navy special-boat crewman
A single case report. The authors suggest that repeated wave impacts on high-speed boats may have contributed, and call this speculative.
Domestic violence survivors show brain trauma similar to athletes
Research on repeated head injuries among survivors of partner violence.
Families, caregiving & legal rights
Research and developments that affect families caring for someone with symptoms, and their legal and financial options.
NFL settlement testing may miss decline in players with advanced CTE
Research comparing settlement test results with brain-bank findings.
NCAA ordered to pay $18 million in football concussion lawsuit
A jury verdict on the NCAA’s duty to warn players.
Insurers pull back from covering athletes’ brain injuries
Insurance changes that affect professional players’ coverage.
About 1,100 former rugby players join UK concussion lawsuit
Former union and league players are suing rugby’s governing bodies over brain injuries.
How CTE develops
Laboratory and brain-bank research into what happens inside the brain.
Head impacts linked to early brain cell loss in young athletes
In 28 donated brains, young contact-sport athletes had lost brain cells where CTE begins, even before CTE developed. A small study that cannot prove cause and effect.
Genetic changes found in single neurons in CTE
Researchers found DNA alterations in brain cells from people with CTE.
The brain’s protective barrier stays leaky for years after contact sports
Research on the blood-brain barrier in retired athletes.
Tau found in the spinal cord in CTE
A brain-bank study of where CTE-related tau appears.
A different view: CTE-type changes may be hard to tell from aging
In 174 donated brains, tau in one small memory area tracked with age rather than football. It looked at one brain region only; scientists continue to debate how CTE is diagnosed.
Earlier research shared on this site (2016–2018)
- Scan brings brighter outlook for brain injuries (October 27, 2017)
High-definition fiber tracking processes a brain scan through computer algorithms to show the brain’s complex wiring. - Parent Beliefs about Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (October 18, 2017)
Kroshus, Chrisman and Rivara compared beliefs of parents of youth soccer players with those of concussion specialists. - This breakthrough could help diagnose CTE in living patients (October 11, 2017)
A study identified a possible biomarker for CTE. - High school football isn’t linked to brain problems later on, if you played in the 1950s (July 3, 2017)
A study of men who played high school football in the 1950s. - UPMC, Pitt, CMU collaborate on brain disorder study (June 12, 2016)
A joint study of degenerative brain disorders linked to head injuries. - FDA authorizes first blood test to aid in evaluating concussion (February 27, 2018)
The FDA permitted marketing of the first blood test to help evaluate mild traumatic brain injury in adults. - Going through the Stages of CTE (February 27, 2018)
CTE can begin years after the head impacts that cause it.
If you or someone you know is struggling, call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, U.S.) to reach someone who can help.
