UK Dementia Trials Accelerator Aims to Radically Increase Clinical Trial Participation

• The Dementia Trials Accelerator will receive £20m in government funding to significantly increase UK participation in dementia clinical trials.
• The initiative seeks to identify individuals at risk of early-stage dementia, addressing recruitment challenges where nearly 80% of potential volunteers are often excluded.
• By uniting industry, academic, and clinical expertise, the accelerator aims to expedite access to potentially life-changing treatments for more people.
• The program intends to accelerate the development of new dementia treatments and attract life sciences investment into the UK.

The UK Dementia Trials Accelerator is set to receive £20 million in government funding, with the goal of dramatically increasing participation in dementia clinical trials across the UK. Led by the UK Dementia Research Institute and Health Data Research UK, and funded by the Medical Research Council, the initiative aims to boost participation from 61 trials in 2021-2022 to "tens of thousands."

With promising treatments for neurodegenerative conditions emerging, revolutionizing the clinical trial infrastructure is crucial to ensure widespread access and address historically low enrollment rates in dementia trials. The Dementia Trials Accelerator seeks to overcome these challenges by swiftly identifying individuals at risk of early-stage dementia and facilitating their participation in accessible clinical trials. This plays a vital role in scaling up these trials and expediting access to potential treatments.

Addressing Recruitment Challenges

The Dementia Trials Accelerator will focus on accelerating the development of new dementia treatments and addressing significant recruitment hurdles. Currently, nearly 80% of potential volunteers are excluded from trials due to various factors. By improving the identification and recruitment process, the initiative aims to broaden access to clinical trials for a larger pool of eligible participants.

Expert Perspectives

Andrew Morris, Director of Health Data Research UK, emphasized the importance of the initiative, stating, "Today’s research is tomorrow’s care. By harnessing cutting-edge technology and the power of health data, the Dementia Trials Accelerator will unite industry, academic and clinical expertise from around the UK to significantly boost our ability to run efficient, large-scale trials, giving more people quicker access to potentially life-changing treatments."

Nadeem Sarwar, Co-Chair of the government’s Dame Barbara Windsor Dementia Goals programme, highlighted the critical need for more efficient dementia trials: "Late-stage clinical trials are an essential and necessary step towards knowing whether new medicines are safe and effective. It is critical that we identify ways of doing more, faster and bigger pivotal dementia trials in the UK: first, to accelerate getting new medicines tested and approved for patients; and second, to attract life sciences investment into the UK."