Great Minds members' event May 2020
Successes in dementia research
On 28 May 2020, the first Great Minds members' event brought together some of the UK's leading dementia researchers to share their perspectives on the latest developments in the field, and to answer your questions on all aspects of dementia research.
Held in association with HealthWise Wales, the event featured short talks from experts on topics including the value of public volunteers in dementia research and our prospects of preventing Alzheimer's disease. The full line-up of speakers:
- Dr Ivan Koychev (Great Minds lead, University of Oxford): The value of volunteers in dementia research
- Professor Simon Lovestone (Janssen Pharmaceuticals and University of Oxford): Alzheimer's disease – the prospects of preventing and slowing its progress
- Dr Vanessa Raymont (University of Oxford): Changing your risk of dementia – what we know about head injury and alcohol
- Professor John O'Brien (University of Cambridge): What brain scans tell us about dementia
- Dr Foteini Tseliou (Cardiff University): What research tells us about caring for those with dementia
Watch the presentations of Prof Sir Simon Lovestone and Dr Vanessa Raymont here, or a recording of the full event on our YouTube channel. Also view the speakers' presentation as PDFs.
The links to papers and studies below answer any questions missed during the event and offer an overview of current research.
Speakers' presentations (PDF)
Alzheimer's disease: the prospects of preventing and slowing its progress
Professor Sir Simon Lovestone
Changing your risk of dementia: what we know about head injury and alcohol
Dr Vanessa Raymont
Brain imaging for dementia
Professor John O'Brien
Carer burden in dementia
Dr Foteini Tseliou
Further papers and studies on dementia risk
During the event a number of attendees asked about recent research into understanding which people are at risk for developing dementia.
Dr Vanessa Raymont recommends the scientific paper Understanding neurodegeneration after traumatic brain injury: from mechanisms to clinical trials in dementia. And for those interested in ongoing research there are a number of studies in progress:
- The PREVENT Dementia study aims to identify the earliest signs of dementia, which scientists believe may occur in the brain decades before symptoms appear.
- EPAD (the European Prevention of Alzheimer's Dementia Consortium) is an interdisciplinary research programme spanning public and private sector organisations across Europe. Together, those organisations are working towards understanding more about Alzheimer's dementia and what we can do to prevent and treat it.
- The Deep and Frequent Phenotyping study is helping scientists to identify the best early warning signs of dementia and to track responses to treatments.
For those interested in understanding the potential of and progress in drug development, Professor Simon Lovestone provides an overview in his paper Will We Have a Drug for Alzheimer's Disease by 2030?
Great Minds and Dementias Platform UK
Great Minds is part of Dementias Platform UK and brings together health study volunteers and researchers to spearhead efforts to find an effective treatment for dementia.
We recruit members who play an active role in helping fast-track new dementia research. They share their health data and volunteer for precision-matched studies and trials that will help researchers identify changes in the brain that may be the origins of conditions like dementia.