Dementia is widely recognised as one of the largest global public health challenges and the most common cause of dementia is Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). In 2022, dementia and Alzheimer's disease was the leading cause of death in the UK and with approximately 33% of the UK population aged fifty or above, there is growing concern regarding the percentage of this demographic who may develop AD in the coming years.
The project will pilot a clinical pathway for the early and accurate diagnosis of AD, including biomarker assessment via cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) which hopefully, can then be implemented across other NHS Trusts.
A biomarker is a measurable molecular, cellular, or biochemical change in the body that helps identify and monitor physiological and disease processes or responses to treatments.
Biomarkers are present in blood, other body fluids (such as CSF), organs and tissues.
The National Institute on Aging–Alzheimer’s Association (NIA-AA) has recently recommended CSF biomarker testing to complement existing diagnostics to improve the accuracy of an AD diagnosis and enable staging of the disease.
Unfortunately, most NHS memory clinics do not have access to appropriate resources to offer CSF biomarker testing, especially those based in Mental Health Trusts, where most memory clinics are located.
This project will attempt to address and validate the processes for building capacity for biomarker testing in NHS Mental Health Trust-based memory clinics nationally. CSF testing capacity will be developed at OH CRF and three other UK sites to act as a pilot for future implementation of this service and provide a blueprint to best support CSF testing in memory clinics and increase testing capacity at scale.
Overall, this project specifically aims to:
- improve diagnostic accuracy of dementias including AD.
- validate the benefits of early diagnosis.
- understand what is required to deliver CSF testing in memory clinics.
- develop a case to commission CSF testing.