NEW YORK, NEW YORK, USA, April 27, 2023/EINPresswire.com/ -- A significant barrier to dementia prevention, care and cure emerges from insufficient attention and support to inequities and disparities among those affected by these devastating conditions and those who care for them. The Centre for Disease Control CDC and Prevention acknowledges that people from minority groups face discrimination when seeking health care for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias1, yet these same populations are disproportionately affected with these diseases. Such barriers are holding back progress on Alzheimer’s disease clinical trials (Olson & Albensi, 2020). The Diversity and Disparity Professional Interest Area of the Alzheimer's Association International Society to Advance Alzheimer's Research and Treatment (ISTAART), recently highlighted how limited access to valid and affordable diagnostic solutions is largely accounting for the reduced number of affected people who are receiving a timely diagnosis (Babulal et al., 2018). This call is being supported by important organizations around the world such as UKDRI 2 , ADI 3 , Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative (DAC) 4, World Health Organization W.H.O. 5 and the Alzheimer’s Association 6.

“Alzheimer’s and related dementias are a huge growing problem both in terms of human cost and to the economy, with an estimated cumulative projected cost of care around $35 trillion over the next decade,” stated Vaibhav Narayan, Executive Vice President, Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative. “DAC is building a cohort of one million people who reflect the disease in all its global diversity to reduce the time and cost of clinical studies and to advance global healthcare system preparedness”.

“To help address this global challenge, ViewMind has recently set up three new laboratories in Colombia, which will provide access to underrepresented and ethnically diverse populations.”, commented Mark Edwards, CEO & Co-founder of ViewMind Inc. A research collaboration with the University Surcolombiana and University of Amazonia will provide wide coverage to the large southern region of Colombia. A collaboration with the University of Antioquia, Group of Neuroscience, will provide access to unique populations affected by rare gene mutations as well as people living in rural areas. These new research collaborations will open new opportunities to introduce innovative technologies to regions where effective diagnostic solutions are urgently needed.

“One of the most important and critical aspects of addressing the Alzheimer’s challenge relates to the availability of cognitive biomarkers that are accurate, non-invasive, affordable, accessible and that work independently of culture, age and education and to provide access to underserved communities.”, commented Dr. Francisco Lopera, head of the Neuroscience Group of the University of Antioquia, Colombia.

1 https://www.cdc.gov/aging/publications/features/barriers-to-equity-in-alzheimers-dementia-care/index.html
2 https://ukdri.ac.uk/news-and-events/ukdri-report-urges-action-to-reduce-health-inequalities-in-dementia
3 https://www.alzint.org/u/World-Alzheimer-Report-2021-Chapter-20.pdf
4 https://www.davosalzheimerscollaborative.org/news-and-press/davos-alzheimers-collaborative-world-economic-forum-announce-major-milestones-in-the-global-fight-against-alzheimers-disease
5 https://www.who.int/news/item/02-09-2021-world-failing-to-address-dementia-challenge
6 https://alz.org/diversity-health-disparity-conference-alzheimers-dementia/overview.asp

James Hardy
Sermelo
+44 20 7557 4332
james.hardy@sermelo.com
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