Defeat Dementia Five years and 100m of investment to power transformational patient benefit
An ambition to solve our greatest medical challenge Dementia is our greatest medical challenge. There is currently no cure. Around 850,000 people are affected in the UK and 44 million across the world. Many are surrounded by families struggling to cope with the debilitating symptoms. The diseases that cause dementia, most commonly Alzheimer s, are progressive. Over time symptoms grow worse and, in later stages, people require 24hr care, by which time they may be unable to communicate and will be experiencing acute psychiatric symptoms. Little wonder dementia is the most feared condition among the over 55s. The economic impacts are also far-reaching. In 2010, the cost of dementia in the UK amounted to 23bn and 360bn worldwide. Dementia is not going to go away. By 2030, with an ageing population, the costs will rise by a further 85%. Much will be met by unpaid carers: families who put life on hold to cope with the devastation that dementia wreaks. The scale of current efforts in dementia research may not be enough to deliver what patients need before the condition spirals out of control. FIVE YEARS, ONE LEAP FORWARD As one of the world authorities in dementia research, Alzheimer s Research UK s Defeat Dementia campaign will deliver research innovation from bench to bedside. We will also catalyse further worldwide research action and investment, inspiring the biggest leap forward in dementia research ever undertaken by a charity. Defeat Dementia is focused on bringing benefits to people living with dementia as soon as possible. The world needs an answer to dementia; the success of Defeat Dementia is a critical part of that answer. Dementia is one of the greatest challenges of our time and what I d call the quiet crisis, one that steals lives and tears at the hearts of families, but that relative to its impact is hardly acknowledged. We need an all-out fight-back against this disease; one that cuts across society. David Cameron COVER: Nerve fibres in a healthy adult human brain. Zeynep M. Saygin, McGovern Intitute, Wellcome Images.
Defeating Dementia requires the biggest ideas The human brain is the most complex structure in the known universe, with up to 100 billion nerve cells. Understanding how it functions and what happens when diseases cause things to go wrong are science s biggest challenges. The answers are there, but we are trying to find the faulty connector in the world s largest supercomputer - without taking off the lid. Current treatments provide modest help, but only for some symptoms and for a limited time. We must do better. We need treatments that prevent, slow or halt disease progression. In tandem we must improve early detection of the diseases that cause dementia so new treatments can be put to work in the right people at the right time. We must also understand the causes of diseases like Alzheimer s. Armed with this knowledge we can help people reduce their risk or develop interventions that may prevent dementia. To accelerate progress towards these aims, we must first overcome a lack of investment and capacity in dementia research. We have to redress an imbalance that sees around 12 times as much invested in cancer research, three times more in heart disease research, and every scientist working on dementia matched by at least six working on cancer. We have to take major steps towards emulating the successes of these other critical disease areas, and bring real benefits to people living with dementia across the world. Alzheimer s Research UK has reached a point in its development where we have an opportunity to meet this challenge. Our development synergises with a period of unprecedented interest in dementia research worldwide, and we must capitalise on this climate. Defeat Dementia outlines our ambition to fund major strategic projects that will grow the research field substantially; focus on targeted drug discovery, develop global partnerships and initiatives, and arm people with the advice and opportunities required to play their own part in defeating dementia. Alzheimer s Research UK is committed to raising over 100m in five years, with targeted investment organised across three core components: People and Partnerships, Innovation and Translation.
SPANNING THE FULL CONTINUUM OF RESEARCH DISCOVERY & IDEAS INNOVATION TRANSLATION BENEFITS FOR PEOPLE WITH DEMENTIA PEOPLE & PARTNERSHIPS INNOVATION New ideas and approaches for scientific breakthroughs Support for the world s most pioneering ideas in dementia research Strategic projects to address fundamental gaps in understanding TRANSLATION Putting discoveries to work to benefit people with dementia Network of institutes to drive drug discovery Clinical trials fund New approaches to prevention PEOPLE AND PARTNERSHIPS The best minds and resources to create the world s leading dementia research field
The Defeat Dementia blueprint Defeat Dementia s components of People and Partnerships, Innovation and Translation span the journey from fundamental discovery to patient benefit, and each has specific and costed activities to achieve its goals. This campaign is a major undertaking and represents something akin to the investment made in HIV/AIDS in the 1980s - a concerted effort that changed the landscape of research to achieve a singular ambition: life-changing benefits for patients. These are some highlights from our plan. We will launch a network of Drug Discovery Institutes, investing 30m. Developing drugs for complex diseases like Alzheimer s requires a multifaceted approach, bringing together basic science, clinical expertise and participating patients. Our Institutes will achieve all three by locating within leading academic establishments that have close links to clinical research units and hospitals. The approach will enable innovative drug discovery research, as well as leveraging further investment into the area through the creation of promising leads. We will launch a groundbreaking 20m Global Clinical Development Fund, dedicated to taking promising treatments into testing in people. The fund will have the objective of increasing the number of phase 1 and phase 2 clinical drug studies alongside investigational biomarker studies to improve disease detection, diagnosis and monitoring. These trials will enable the academic and SME sectors to perform innovative studies in carefully selected clinical cohorts where medicines are targeted to the most appropriate patients, maximising the potential to see positive effects. These studies will help create a market of new potential medicines to attract pharmaceutical industry investment and significantly increase the probability of providing people with dementia with effective treatments.
The Defeat Dementia blueprint We will introduce a new Prevention Fund by challenging the scientific community to answer the biggest questions in prevention, seed-funding the best ideas. Following the Blackfriars Consensus of 2014, there is a growing agreement that scientific evidence is now sufficient to enable people to begin to act to mitigate their risk of dementia. The Consensus also urged further research to reduce the modifiable risk factors for dementia, and identify positive action for the population, a challenge that our new Fund will meet. With the support of a major philanthropic foundation, we have launched the Alzheimer s Research UK Stem Cell Research Centre. Based at the University of Cambridge, the Centre brings together two world class research institutes: the Gurdon Institute, Cambridge, and the Institute of Neurology, UCL. The Centre focuses on understanding key disease mechanisms, finding out their genetic causes and identifying new potential drug interventions for Alzheimer s disease. We are doubling our investment in the Alzheimer s Research UK Research Network, expanding its scope and uniting more established and prospective dementia researchers from across the UK than ever. The Network provides a range of collaborative funding initiatives and specialised meetings as well as common resources organised across 15 centres of excellence and connecting over 750 scientists.
Alzheimer s Research UK is the driving force behind dementia research in the UK. Without their expertise, passion and commitment to research, the challenge of dementia would be even greater. Prof John Hardy FRS, University College London
Reigniting Dementia R&D The worldwide economic impact of dementia is vast. At 360bn, the cost of dementia is equivalent to the world s 18th largest economy, ahead of Sweden and Belgium. Why has there been such a legacy of underfunding of research in the face of these figures? It s because dementia research is a uniquely challenging area of science, dealing with the most complex and inaccessible organ in our bodies. Public and charitable spending in dementia has been growing slowly, but remains a long way behind other areas of research. Pharmaceutical funding of research has been under sustained pressure as drugs trials have failed, with many companies scaling back R&D in the area. Drug sales growth data from 2012-13, which can be viewed as a proxy for future investment, reveals cancer, arthritis, diabetes, and thrombosis to be the likely areas of focus.
With an urgent need for new therapies in dementia, success has to be born out of a new model and one which integrates the efforts of multiple agencies: government, academia, pharma, drug regulators, and charities. Alzheimer s Research UK s position to work across these sectors internationally allows us to quickly and effectively close gaps between early innovation and treatment breakthroughs. Alzheimer s Research UK has the ability to create a new market for dementia R&D by fast-tracking academic discovery into viable leads that will attract new pharmaceutical investment. Defeat Dementia provides the infrastructure to achieve this through initiatives like the worldwide Dementia Consortium and our Drug Discovery Institutes. There is precedent for charity funding and innovation making the difference. An analysis published in Nature Reviews Drug Discovery in 2014 showed that of 94 drugs that were approved in the EU between 2010 and 2012, a fifth originated from not-forprofit organisations.
Why Alzheimer s Research UK? Alzheimer s Research UK is the organisation best placed to take the lead in dementia research and Defeat Dementia provides the best approach to enabling transformational breakthroughs that will make a difference to millions of lives. For over 20 years, we have been singularly committed to defeating dementia through research. We have established the UK s only network of dementia research scientists, connecting 15 centres of excellence at leading UK universities. With 53m committed to over 500 projects since 1998, we are the largest charity funder of dementia research in Europe. We have helped shape the current understanding of dementia, with our funding underpinning the discovery of 21 of the 22 known Alzheimer s risk genes, and our investigation into the dangers of antipsychotic drug over-prescription saving countless lives. We know what research is required to deliver impact. We are ideally positioned between the academic and pharmaceutical sectors to expedite the translation of discovery science into further clinical development and the benefits to people with dementia that this brings. The Dementia Consortium is just one initiative that embodies this approach. Bringing together 3m of Alzheimer s Research UK and pharmaceutical industry funding with the expertise of MRC Technology, the Consortium is focused on driving promising drug targets into further drug development. Alzheimer s Research UK campaigning has focused successfully on improving the research environment for UK dementia scientists. We were a key influencer in bringing about the government s commitment to double research funding as part of the Prime Minister s Dementia Challenge. We are now an important partner in delivering the legacy ambitions following the 2013 G8 Dementia Summit. I know three people who have got better after a brain tumour. I haven t heard of anyone who s got better from Alzheimer s. Sir Terry Pratchett, Alzheimer s Research UK Patron, who has Alzheimer s disease.
Delivering on the promise Dementia research is playing catch up but we can t wait any longer to close the gap. We have to create the kind of research success that has produced cancer survivors and repaired broken hearts. Defeat Dementia is our best hope of achieving these successes for people with dementia. If we get this right, in 5-10 years we will have changed the complexion of dementia research in the UK and across the world. We will have: A network of centres of excellence in the UK and overseas, leading on drug discovery, with more new drugs in development than ever before and vastly improved prospects for a diseasemodifying therapy. Twice as many people with dementia involved in clinical studies, making the UK the world leader in clinical dementia research. Assembled the strongest evidence for dementia prevention to empower people to take control of their dementia risk. 20% more UK scientists working in dementia, closing the gap between the condition and other major disease areas like cancer and heart disease. A world-leading network of dementia scientists, nurturing researchers throughout their careers. Alzheimer s Research UK is going further than any other charity in finding new ways to prevent and treat the diseases that cause dementia. Through investing in our research, you can be part of the solution to our greatest scientific and medical challenge. Thank you
If you are interested in discussing Defeat Dementia in more detail, please contact Ian Wilson, Director, on 0300 111 5555. Alzheimer s Research UK 3 Riverside, Granta Park Cambridge, CB21 6AD www.alzheimersresearchuk.org Registered charity no. 1077089 and SC042474