Australia Dementia Network Screening and Trials
This initiative seeks to
- accelerate development of effective therapies to prevent or treat dementia, and
- give more Australians access to the latest potential therapies through participation in trials
We are doing this by collaborating closely with international clinical trials to encourage large trials to be brought to Australia.
This initiative will also help Australian researchers find participants to trial their therapeutic discoveries and for longitudinal observational research to learn more about the development of Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias.
The Australian Dementia Network is establishing sites that will screen dementia patients for referral to available clinical trials.
We currently have screening sites operating in Melbourne, Adelaide, Sydney, Newscastle, Brisbane and Perth.
Slow build-up of two toxic proteins called amyloid and tau are believed to be the cause of Alzheimer’s disease. Previous studies have shown amyloid in all participants with Alzheimer’s disease, but have also observed that amyloid begins to deposit in the brain 15 to 20 years before other symptoms develop. It is also currently believed that amyloid may speed up the formation of the other toxic protein, called tau.
The earlier that drugs designed to slow the build-up of amyloid or to clear it from the brain are given, the greater the chance of preventing this major cause of dementia.
We are developing the best brain scans and blood tests to identify people with brain amyloid so they can participate in early treatment trials aimed to slow the disease and prevent dementia.
For more information
Please contact Dr Jo Robertson – Australian Dementia Network Screening and Trials Coordinator
Would you like to participate in a trial?