Prior studies report mixed conclusions on the association between APOE ɛ4 and mortality.63,79–81 It may seem counterintuitive that the two predictor variables in our model that are characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease, APOE ɛ4 and β-amyloid, had no direct association with the hazard of mortality (nor were their interactions with sex significant for mortality) (Fig. 2 and Supplementary Table 2). Here, APOE is linked to Alzheimer disease.