EBC is pleased to be part of the session “Diagnosis, diagnostic tools and cognitive assessments” at the upcoming 36th Global Conference of Alzheimer’s Disease International. The session will take place on 26 April 2024 at 13:30-15:00 in Krakow (Poland). Prof. Giovanni Frisoni will present “Rethinking Alzheimer’s disease: Scaling up health systems’ readiness” as one of the experts involved in the Rethinking Alzheimer’s disease project, coordinated by EBC.

Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the most common form of dementia, is a progressive and debilitating neurodegenerative condition which robs people of their memory, their independence, their relationships and, ultimately, their lives. It affects close to 7 million people in the European Union (EU) alone.

The detection and diagnosis of AD relies on a system that remains focused on the late stage of the disease, despite a better understanding of the disease progression. Clinical practice and healthcare systems’ readiness to detect, diagnose and treat the disease effectively are still lagging. The use of biomarkers (cerebrospinal fluid tests (CSF) and positron emission tomography scans (PET)), which are central to a diagnostic assessment for people with AD symptoms, as well as relevant diagnostic facilities are under-utilised. PET imaging is expensive and of limited availability, and CSF sampling may be considered invasive.

The European Brain Council’s ‘Rethinking Alzheimer’s disease: Detection and diagnosis’ White Paper has looked at the barriers to early diagnosis and how the healthcare systems infrastructure for detection and diagnosis of AD need to be transformed in order for people with AD to benefit from innovative solutions once they become approved for use. The Rethinking Schizophrenia project falls under the Rethinking the management of brain disorders series, research-driven projects offering policy recommendations to make tangible changes with the aim to improve the lives of people living with brain disorders, neurological and mental alike, across Europe. More details about the outcomes of the Rethinking Alzheimer’s disease project can be found in this article.