GUEST EDITORIAL - Building an innovative national network to support and retain new dementia researchers

Dementia is a formidable challenge given its impact on the economy, on the health and social care system, and on the individuals personally affected. 

It is imperative therefore to support new researchers to enter and to remain in the field of dementia research.  

In 2024, Alzheimer's Society announced an investment of £9million into three Doctoral Training Centres (DTC) which will recruit around 90 PhD students over several years. 

The centres will play a pivotal role in expanding the pipeline and nurturing a bold and ambitious network of talented researchers early in their careers. 

At present, Alzheimer’s Society is actively funding research worth £54million. Supporting early career researchers lies at the heart of our Research Mission and our spend. 

We want to support researchers to thrive – not just survive – in academia.  

As a model, the DTCs provide large scale, long-term research grants which will bring the best researchers into dementia. Not only that, but the DTC model will provide them with the world-class support necessary to enable them to remain in dementia research and secure additional funding in their future careers. Ultimately, this will boost dementia research capacity in the UK. 

A collaborative way 

Collaboration is the only way to achieve what is needed for dementia and our Doctoral Training Centres are a perfect example of how, by coming together, the conditions for impactful change can be created. 

The centres are not physical places but are a network of researchers from four, five or six universities from across the UK working on the same research topic. 

This approach will give students opportunities to collaborate, to share knowledge with their peers and to learn from leaders in the field. Students will get greater access to infrastructure, including training and the latest equipment. 

Their research will lead to vital new knowledge where huge gaps exist. 

Alzheimer’s Society Centre for Vascular and Immune Contributors 

Five students from the University of Manchester, Imperial College London, the University of Edinburgh and City St George’s University of London may be separated by geography but are the first cohort to join the centre led by Professor Stuart Allen at the University of Manchester. 

These researchers will work to understand how the cardiovascular system and the immune system contribute to dementia. One student is focused on uncovering disease mechanisms involving sugar molecules in cerebral small vessel disease and vascular dementia. Another is looking at predicting neurodegeneration using big data and eye scans. 

Alzheimer’s Society DTC for Lewy Body Dementia 

Lewy body dementia is one of the most common forms of dementia and the symptoms are some of the most distressing. However, there is a real lack of research in Lewy body dementia compared with other dementia.  

Professor John-Paul Taylor at Newcastle University will lead this cohort collaborating with University College London, University of Exeter, University of Southampton, University of Nottingham, and King’s College London. 

The Doctoral Training Centre will fund a total of 20 early career projects across eight years. Students will start in September. 

Alzheimer’s Society DTC for Integrated Care 

This DTC will explore how to deliver joined-up care which promotes independence, and which reaches people in under-served populations from diagnosis through to end of life. 

Led by Professor Nathan Davies and Professor Claudia Cooper, the work of this DTC will lead to meaningful impact for people at all stages of the dementia journey. 

Too complex 

All too often tackling dementia is viewed as too complex and too expensive. Although one in three people born today will develop dementia the condition is widely misunderstood and under-prioritised. 

By providing outstanding career support, the Doctoral Training Centres are an opportunity to help develop the best and brightest into people who can change the world. 

Read more about our Doctoral Training Centres