Alzheimer’s Research UK, the Alzheimer’s Society, and the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) are collaborating and leading AD researchers to bring a diagnostic blood test to the UK’s National Health Service (NHS).
“Dementia affects around 900,000 people in the UK today, and that number is expected to rise to 1.4 million by 2040. It is the UK’s biggest killer,” Fiona Carragher, with the Alzheimer’s Society, said during a media briefing announcing the project.
Yet, many people face a very long wait of up to 2-4 years to get a dementia diagnosis, and many cases remain undiagnosed, she noted.
A chief reason is lack of access to specialized diagnostic testing. Currently, only 2% of people in the United Kingdom have access to advanced diagnostic tests such as PET scans and lumbar punctures owing to limited availability.
“Getting an early and accurate diagnosis is the pivotal first step to getting help today and unlocking hope for the future” and blood biomarkers provide a “real opportunity to disrupt the diagnostic paradigm,” Ms. Carragher said. It also offers greater opportunities to participate in research and clinical trials, she added.
Attitude shift
Susan Kohlhaas, PhD, with Alzheimer’s Research UK, noted that attitudes toward dementia diagnosis have changed in the past few years. The days when people may have not wanted to know if they have dementia are gone.
Data from the latest wave of the Alzheimer’s Research UK Dementia Attitudes Monitor survey show that 9 in 10 people would seek a diagnosis from their provider. “That’s been driven by awareness of treatments and things that people can proactively do to try and slow disease progression,” Dr. Kohlhaas said.
“As new treatments for dementia become available there will to be a surge in people seeking a diagnosis. At the moment, we don’t have adequate infrastructure to cope with that demand,” Dr. Kohlhaas added.
She noted that blood tests are starting to show their potential as an effective part of the diagnosis and are widely used in research.
“In some cases, they are similar in sensitivity to gold-standard PET scans and lumbar punctures, and they’re less expensive and potentially more scalable on the NHS. What we need to do over the next several years is to understand how they fit into the clinical pathway,” Dr. Kohlhaas said.
The project will involve working with leading dementia researchers to pilot the implementation of potential blood tests in the NHS that can give an early and accurate diagnose of dementia.
The project, which kicks off in January 2024, will receive £5 million ($6.13 million) awarded by the UK Postcode Dream Fund. Specific details regarding the leadership team, participating centers, and specific blood biomarker tests to be trialed will be announced then.
Ms. Carragher and Dr. Kohlhaas reported no relevant financial conflicts of interest.
A version of this article appeared on Medscape.com.