Funded by a nearly £1.2M (~$1.5M USD) award, this research will enable
ongoing validation of AccelADx™, a breakthrough
screening test for early detection of Alzheimer's dementia.
BELFAST, Northern Ireland and
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., July 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Cumulus
Neuroscience (Cumulus; The Company), a global digital health
company focused on advancing neuroscience clinical trials and
patient care through improved data, today announced receipt of
funding from Innovate UK, the UK's innovation agency, which drives
productivity and economic growth by supporting businesses to
develop and realise the potential of new ideas.
![Cumulus Neuroscience Cumulus Neuroscience](https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1903807/Cumulus_Neuroscience_Logo.jpg)
Funded by Innovate UK's Small Business Research Initiative
(SBRI), this award is focused on enabling organisations with select
novel biomarkers to be evaluated as part of the Global Alzheimer's
Platform Foundation (GAP) Bio-Hermes 2 Study. Cumulus will deploy
AccelADx in the study, a novel, AI-enabled screening test that
detects small, subtle changes in brain waves associated with memory
recall. Bio-Hermes 2, which aims to generate data to accelerate the
adoption and effective use of biomarkers in the study of
Alzheimer's disease, will investigate the relationship of novel
biomarkers to the current gold standard diagnosis across an
ethnically diverse population of 1,000 participants in the United States, Canada, and Europe. The data collected in Bio-Hermes 2
will provide a rich dataset on the extent to which digital and
other biomarkers can substitute for more labor-intensive clinical
exams and expensive positron emission tomography (PET) scans.
Importantly, Cumulus will gain access to the full Bio-Hermes 2
dataset and regulatory-standard data to enable subsequent
submissions.
"The diagnosis of Alzheimer's dementia requires detection of
changes in brain biology and memory function. While blood tests are
emerging to assess biology, physicians still lack accurate tools
for detecting changes in cognition and memory, which directly drive
loss of independence and reduced quality of life for patients and
their caregivers," said Brian Murphy, PhD, Founder and Chief
Scientific Officer of Cumulus. "Existing written and computerised
cognitive tests can yield false results if patients are anxious or
do not understand the instructions. Our goal is to help patients
and physicians more directly with the AccelADx screening test,
which is uniquely scalable, complementary to protein markers, and
specific to Alzheimer's disease. This Innovate UK SBRI award will
allow us to validate how well AccelADx works in a large and
diverse group of patients, providing critical data to support
regulatory approval."
The Cumulus NeuLogiq™ Platform – which includes a
first-in-class FDA-cleared and UKCA-marked dry electrode
electroencephalogram (EEG) headset – can track the integrity and
connectivity of brain networks. The headset synchronises with
tablet-based assessments across multiple domains of brain function
for use in-clinic or remotely at-home, allowing for an increased
ease-of-use for patients, caregivers, and clinical teams.
"Alzheimer's dementia is a devastating disease for patients and
their families, directly affecting almost 60 million people today.
This is a global problem that requires a global solution," said Dr.
George Stothart, senior lecturer,
Department of Psychology, University of Bath, inventor of AccelADx,
and Research Fellow at Cumulus. "In many cases, symptoms appear
very gradually and can be difficult to detect during the early
stages of disease. As a result, many patients miss the opportunity
to fully benefit from newer treatments focused on slowing disease
progression. Quicker, more accurate ways to diagnose dementia are
greatly needed so that patients can get treatments earlier and
families have an opportunity to plan for the future. We believe
AccelADx has the potential to address this substantial unmet
need."
Alzheimer's is a progressive disease that affects brain
function, memory, and other cognitive abilities. It is the most
common cause of dementia, affecting millions of people worldwide.
Symptoms usually develop slowly and worsen over time, including
memory loss, confusion, mood swings, changes in behavior and
personality, and difficulty with language and communication.
Currently, there is no known cure for Alzheimer's. Today, earlier
diagnosis can enable patients to make lifestyle changes, including
exercising and decreasing alcohol consumption, both of which have
been shown to slow disease progression. In the future, having the
ability to diagnose patients earlier may expedite enrollment in
clinical studies and the identification of new treatments.
Cumulus supports precision in CNS clinical trials for its
industry partners by enabling remote monitoring of patients across
multiple domains of brain function. To learn more,
visit www.cumulusneuro.com.
About Cumulus Neuroscience
With a mission to generate
the data and insights required to accelerate diagnosis and
management of central nervous system (CNS) disorders for millions
of patients and caregivers around the world, Cumulus Neuroscience
is advancing NeuLogiq™, an AI-based, multi-domain digital biomarker
platform to enable better, faster decision making in neurology and
neuropsychiatry clinical trials and patient care. Designed for and
with 10 of the world's leading pharma companies, the platform
enables decentralized trials, and is already making a difference in
the development of therapies for Alzheimer's Disease, depression,
and schizophrenia.
Designed to provide an industry-wide standard for real-world
measurement of disease progression, Cumulus combines patented
technology, in-house expertise, and key industry partnerships to
capture large amounts of real-world, clinical data repeated over
time, across multiple behavioral and physiological domains in the
patient's home – all with an EEG headset synced to a novel,
tablet-based neuro-assessment platform. Together with machine
learning (ML) analytics and the world's largest database of
annotated, longitudinal, neurofunctional data, Cumulus simplifies
and improves the robustness of neuroscience clinical trials to
provide the best and most cost-effective assessment of CNS
treatment outcomes.
The Company is supported by highly experienced specialized
investors, DDF/SV Health Investors, LifeArc and Future Fund, and a
world-class Scientific and Technical Advisory Board.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Julie
Dietel
FINN Partners for Cumulus
julie.dietel@finnpartners.com
Tel: 978.502.7705
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