The Global CEO Initiative on Alzheimer’s Disease Publishes Landmark Recommendations for Integrating Alzheimer’s Blood Tests into Primary and Secondary Care Settings Across the US

Diverse group of experts provide critical consensus on actionable recommendations to implement Alzheimer’s blood tests into clinical practice.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Oct. 08, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The Global CEO Initiative on Alzheimer’s Disease (CEOi) is thrilled to announce the peer-reviewed publication of two companion manuscripts in the journal Alzheimer’s & Dementia: “Considerations for widespread implementation of blood-based biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease,” and “Recommendations for clinical implementation of blood-based biomarkers for Alzheimer’s disease.”  

“As new Alzheimer’s therapeutics emerge, the demand for biomarker testing is rising. Unlike traditional diagnostic methods, blood tests provide a more accessible and cost-effective alternative for biomarker testing, offering a scalable solution to meet this growing need,” said George Vradenburg, Convenor of CEOi. 

The publications mark the latest output from the Blood-Based Biomarker (BBM) Workgroup, which earlier this year established recommended performance standards for Alzheimer’s blood tests in Nature Reviews Neurology. These new publications released today provide a clear roadmap for how to effectively integrate blood tests in clinical practice. Together, these publications represent a major step forward in diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease, allowing for a more timely and accurate diagnostic experience for patients. 

“Blood tests of Alzheimer’s pathology are more feasible than cerebrospinal fluid or amyloid PET biomarkers for contributing to an early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease in primary care. However, for these tests to benefit patients at scale, clinicians in both primary and secondary care need to understand how they can incorporate them into their workflows. These publications provide an actionable path for health care providers to support better detection and management of Alzheimer’s disease,” said Michelle Mielke, Ph.D., professor and chair of epidemiology and prevention at Wake Forest University School of Medicine.  

CEOi convened the BBM Workgroup with more than 90 stakeholders from various sectors, including healthcare, academia, non-profit organizations, government, venture capital, industry, and patient advocacy to provide practical recommendations to address system barriers for the rapid uptake of blood tests into clinical practice. 

Several key barriers prevent integration of blood tests into clinical practice, such as a limited understanding of test characteristics, insufficient evidence on performance across diverse populations, and the ethical management of tests. To better understand clinician awareness and readiness in using blood tests, CEOi recently conducted a survey in partnership with the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) and the Gerontological Society of America (GSA). The recommendations published today identify actionable solutions to address these barriers and detail a framework for effective implementational pathways. 

“There are significant barriers to equitable access to Alzheimer’s diagnosis and care within the current healthcare system. These recommendations set a standardized approach for incorporating blood-based biomarkers (BBMs) within the Alzheimer’s diagnostic pathway by providing clear guidance on their application and interpretation, ensuring their effective and ethical use. As demand for accurate diagnosis increases with the availability of disease-modifying therapies and a growing dementia population, these guidelines could enhance early detection and access to essential treatments for those who need them most,” said Chi Udeh-Momoh, Ph.D., assistant professor of epidemiology and prevention at Wake Forest University School of Medicine. 

For more information, please visit the CEOi BBM Workgroup website. 

About CEOi: The Global CEO Initiative on Alzheimer’s Disease (CEOi), convened by UsAgainstAlzheimer’s in 2013, is an organization of global private-sector leaders from across the pharmaceutical, biotech, diagnostics, caregiving and financial sectors, who have joined together to provide business leadership in the fight against Alzheimer’s. CEOi partners with leaders from all sectors to transform the disease from a social, health, and economic crisis into an opportunity for healthy aging worldwide. 

Media requests should be directed to: Caroline Hubbard, CEOi Secretariat 
chubbard@highlanterngroup.com 

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• Press Release

CONTACT: Caroline Hubbard
The Global CEO Initiative on Alzheimer's Disease
415-860-6565
chubbard@highlanterngroup.com