Cambridge Cognition Holdings (AIM:COG) said it is joining BEAD-PC, a UK study led by Imperial College London that will test combining its CANTAB digital cognitive assessments with blood-based biomarkers to diagnose Alzheimer's disease in primary care.
The neuroscience technology company's assessments are already used extensively in clinical trials and academic research, and the deal extends that validated technology into a live NHS diagnostic pathway.
Initiated in June and running for 15 months, BEAD-PC aims to recruit 500 participants with subjective memory complaints or early cognitive decline symptoms across North West London, with GPs referring eligible patients to dedicated Primary Care Assessment Centres for digital cognitive testing and blood sampling.
The study forms part of the Davos Alzheimer's Collaborative's Healthcare System Preparedness Accurate Diagnosis programme, a global initiative also running in the United States, Germany, the Netherlands and Japan, with the UK arm conducted by Imperial College London, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and North West London Primary Care Federations, and supported by the NIHR Imperial Biomedical Research Centre.
Chief executive Rob Baker said blood-based biomarkers identify the biological signs of Alzheimer's while digital cognitive assessments capture changes that matter to patients and carers in everyday life, adding that BEAD-PC "has the potential to shorten the route to appropriate treatment, support improved clinical decision-making, and enable healthcare systems respond more effectively".
Professor Lefkos Middleton of Imperial College London said the study is focused on "the practical challenge of understanding how blood biomarkers and cognitive assessment can be implemented, at scale" within routine NHS primary care.
The move sits alongside Cambridge Cognition's wider push to embed CANTAB assessments into healthcare and consumer platforms, following its IRB-approved study with Oura enrolling up to 45,000 members and its earlier 23,000-participant Project Intuition study run with Biogen and Apple.
The company's half-year results, reported in September, showed revenue visibility into 2027 improving to £6.6m, alongside continued investment in regulatory clearances and clinical data programmes funded by a £2.6m raise completed in July.