USA2 SPOTLIGHT 

A July 19, 2016 Huffington Post blog highlighted the collaboration between the University of California San Francisco, UsAgainstAlzheimer’s, Mayo, and the Global Alzheimer’s Platform Foundation to spur clinical trial participation via online registries. According to the post, “Having a reliable source of trial-ready people is a major breakthrough, not least of which because it could greatly widen access to people who are pre-clinical. The next piece of the puzzle? A standing network of doctors and certified clinical trial sites ready to take in potential enrollees. That’s where George Vradenburg comes in…The GAP has identified and coordinated with clinical trial sites throughout the U.S. and worldwide that are ready to enroll qualified Brain Health Registry participants into their clinical trials. That network of clinics has agreed to standardized procedures to streamline the Alzheimer’s clinical trial process and is ready to enroll qualified Brain Health Registry participants in trials.”

MUST READS

A July 18, 2016 The Wall Street Journal article reported on new methods that companies are using to attract patients to drug trials. According to the article, “Drug companies are testing new ways to get more people to participate in clinical trials for promising medicines. Some companies sift through laboratory-test records to identify people with certain diseases who might qualify for drug trials. Other firms monitor how patients discuss their diseases in online forums to develop effective recruitment approaches…To improve recruitment for a recent Alzheimer’s drug trial, Parexel International Corp., one of several research organizations that contract with drug companies to run clinical trials, analyzed three million mentions of the disease in online discussions over a six-month period. Parexel realized it would need to target appeals to caregivers’ desire to help loved ones, says Paul Evans, who oversees Parexel’s site selection and patient recruitment efforts. Parexel ran website ads that mentioned how Alzheimer’s affected patients’ families and friends. Due to the ads, Mr. Evans says, researchers were contacted about enrolling 900 patients in the trial.”

A July 18, 2016 NJ.com article underscored the importance of early diagnosis for dementia. According to the article, “When it comes to dementia, early diagnosis is crucial for both the patient and family, experts agree. It opens up an array of options that can slow the rate of cognitive decline, improve quality of life for the patient, and offer help and support to a family overwhelmed by the demands of caring for someone with dementia.”

A July 18, 2016 The Washington Post article highlighted advice for taking care of a parent with Alzheimer’s. According to the article, “find the right doctor. Dementia patients require a caring approach from physicians, Veney says, particularly because some medications can have such serious side effects as hallucinations, which can be frightening.”

RESEARCH, SCIENCE, AND TECHNOLOGY 

A July 19, 2016 News Medical article reported that “A toxic Alzheimer's protein can spread through the brain--jumping from one neuron to another--via the extracellular space that surrounds the brain's neurons, suggests new research from Columbia University Medical Center.”

A July 18, 2016 Medical News Today article reported that “A vaccine for Alzheimer's disease could be trialed in humans within the next 3-5 years, after researchers from the United States and Australia have uncovered a formulation that they say successfully targets brain proteins that play a role in development and progression of the disease.”

A July 18, 2016 Drug Discovery & Development article reported that “Cambridge researchers have identified - and shown that it may be possible to control - the mechanism that leads to the rapid build-up of the disease-causing 'plaques' that are characteristic of Alzheimer's disease.”