16th July 2014 - Forget about the Funding...

Thought for the day : " Little known fact - Film trailers used to play after the main film - thus the name .." Not many people know that!!!

Once more, it seems, that the source of a great breakthrough in science fails to be attributed to the organisation that has supported and funded it . The news last week was full of the possible breakthrough in the early diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease through a new blood test.

Loss of tissue in a demented brain compared with a healthy one

The Telegraph article is a good example...

A blood test has been developed to predict if someone will develop Alzheimer’s within a year, raising hopes that the disease could become preventable.

After a decade of research, scientists at Oxford University and King’s College London are confident they have found 10 proteins which show the disease is imminent.

Clinical trials will start on people who have not yet developed Alzheimer’s to find out which drugs halt its onset.

The blood test, which could be available in as little as two years, was described as a “major step forward” by Jeremy Hunt, the Health Secretary, and by charities which said it could revolutionise research into a cure.

“Although we are making drugs they are all failing. But if we could treat people earlier it may be that the drugs are effective,” said Simon Lovestone, professor of translational neuroscience at Oxford. “Alzheimer’s begins to affect the brain many years before patients are diagnosed with the disease. If we could treat the disease in that phase we would in effect have a preventative strategy.” 

About 600,000 people in Britain suffer from Alzheimer’s and hundreds of thousands have mild cognitive impairment. Last month, David Cameron pledged to fast-track dementia research.
The new test, which examines 10 proteins in the blood, can predict with 87 per cent accuracy whether someone suffering memory problems will develop Alzheimer’s within a year. 

The first tests are likely to be available in between two and five years. However, the study is likely to throw up ethical dilemmas about whether patients should receive potentially devastating news about their future. Prof Lovestone said it was unlikely that GPs would use the test until a treatment was available.
The breakthrough was welcomed by dementia charities and academics.
Eric Karran, director of research at Alzheimer’s Research UK, which helped fund the research, said it brought the prospect of Alzheimer’s becoming a preventable disease “significantly closer”. 

Prof Gordon Wilcock, emeritus professor of geratology at Oxford, added that it was “great news”. The study was published in the journal Alzheimer’s & Dementia.

While I welcome all of this, it seems a shame that once again the source of the funding for the project has been ignored.

The particular study was chosen and supported by that unmentionable group (unless you want to write a story about conspiracy) the Freemasons of the Grand Lodge of England.

Research funded by the Masonic Samaritan Fund has successfully developed a blood test that could predict whether someone with early memory problems will develop Alzheimer’s within a year.

The MSF awarded £181,723 to Alzheimer’s Research UK in 2011 to fully fund the first two years of Professor Lovestone’s research.

This is a significant breakthrough in dementia research as it enables scientists to test potential new treatments on people with the earliest stages of Alzheimer’s disease.

Previously, by the time people received a diagnosis and were able to take part in clinical trials their dementia had progressed beyond the point where useful insights into the treatment’s effectiveness could be captured.

The blood test will help researchers target groups of people for future studies, driving the search for new treatments forward and bringing us closer to a cure faster.

From the Alzheimer Research Blog 

What next?

While this study is already one of the largest to look at changes in blood in MCI, the results still need replicating in even larger groups, and this is next on the to-do list for the team.  They also need to build more streamlined technology for the measurement of the 10 proteins, to make the test easier to carry out in the lab. These are all important steps in the development process of any new test towards the clinic.
The ultimate aim is to develop a clinical tool that could help doctors to paint a clearer picture for people with mild cognitive impairment, as well as assisting in the design of clinical trials for new treatments. Today’s research takes us closer to this goal and highlights the importance of continued investment in research to make this hope a reality.

Last month, Alzheimer’s Research UK launched a £100m Defeat Dementia campaign, including initiatives such as the Dementia Consortium and our Global Clinical Development Fund. These initiatives will support researchers like Prof Lovestone in developing new detection techniques to the point where they can be used by doctors in the clinic and directly benefit people with memory problems.

Listen to Prof Lovestone, the renowned study leader, talk more about his pioneering research on this podcast.

I have no doubt that Freemasons will be supporting the next stage of the research. Sadly I have little doubt that few will ever know