Frontotemporal dementia
Information
In this section:
What is frontotemporal dementia?
Dementia is caused by different diseases that affect the brain. The most common disease that causes dementia is Alzheimer’s. Frontotemporal dementia, also known as FTD, is a rare type of dementia.
For every 100 people living with dementia, two will have frontotemporal dementia.
FTD often develops earlier than other forms of dementia, including in people in their 50’s and 60’s.
What is frontotemporal dementia?
Dementia is caused by different diseases that affect the brain. The most common disease that causes dementia is Alzheimer’s. Frontotemporal dementia, also known as FTD, is a rare type of dementia.
For every 100 people living with dementia, two will have frontotemporal dementia.
FTD often develops earlier than other forms of dementia, including in people in their 50’s and 60’s.
Go to section:
What causes frontotemporal dementia (FTD)?
FTD is caused by damage to cells in areas of the brain called the frontal and temporal lobes.
These areas of our brains control our personality, emotions and behaviour.
They are also responsible for our speech and understanding of words.
What happens in the brain of someone with FTD?
In FTD, there is a build-up of proteins in the frontal and temporal lobes. Some of the proteins linked to FTD are called:
-
tau
-
tdp-43
-
a group called FET proteins
These proteins clump together in and around damaged brain cells.
As the damage spreads through different parts of the brain, the symptoms of dementia get worse. So, over time a person with FTD will need more help with everyday life.
FTD is sometimes described as an umbrella term because it can be caused by several different underlying diseases.
A doctor may call the underlying diseases their specific names or may describe them all as ‘frontotemporal dementia’, which we do here.
Frontotemporal dementia includes the following:
-
Behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD)
-
Semantic variant PPA, also known as semantic dementia
- The word ‘semantic’ refers to the meaning of words
-
Non-fluent variant PPA, also known as progressive non-fluent aphasia
- Aphasia is where people have problems speaking and writing
-
Frontotemporal dementia with motor neurone disease (FTD-MND)
Downloads
Dementia information
The information in this booklet is for anyone who wants to
know more about frontotemporal dementia, also known
as FTD. This includes people living with FTD, their carers,
families and friends.
-
PDF, 1,418 KB, 13 pages
Order health information
Alzheimer's Research UK has a wide range of information about dementia. Order booklets or download them from our online form.
Complete the survey
Was this information helpful?
Let us know what you think by filling out this short survey.
This information was updated in January 2026 and is due for review in January 2028. It was written by Alzheimer's Research UK's Information Services team with input from lay and expert reviewers. Please get in touch if you'd like a referenced copy.
This information is produced with support from The Perfume Shop who had no input into the content.
