Cambridge and Fortis Launch Global Study for Early Dementia Detection
Cambridge, Monday, 10 August 2026.
University of Cambridge and Fortis Hospitals launched an international study to improve early dementia detection using digital testing, expanding diverse clinical data beyond Western populations.
Strategic Partnership Announcement
On Monday, 10 August 2026, the University of Cambridge, Fortis Hospitals, and Prema Cognition officially announced a major international research collaboration aimed at accelerating the early detection of dementia [1]. This clinical initiative seeks to gather comprehensive, multimodal datasets from 300 patients suffering from early cognitive impairment, marking a significant step in neurodegenerative disease research [1]. By combining deep clinical expertise with advanced analytical tools, the collaboration aims to identify critical early bio-markers and digital phenotypes that could transform diagnostic pathways [1]. The project is designed to reduce long-term healthcare liabilities and open new commercial avenues within the global medtech and biopharmaceutical sectors [1].
The announcement highlights a concerted effort to shift testing beyond traditional European and North American centers, addressing the underrepresentation of Indian populations in international dementia research [1]. Dr. Julia Cooney, CEO and founder of Prema Cognition, emphasized that the future of dementia research lies in understanding the disease earlier and building more diverse datasets that better reflect the global population [1]. This statement underscores the strategic importance of including varied demographic data to improve the generalizability of clinical findings [1]. The partnership leverages the strengths of academic research, hospital clinical practice, and private sector innovation to achieve these goals [1].
Methodology and Data Collection
The prospective longitudinal study aims to create a multimodal dataset by tracking over 300 patients across a spectrum of early cognitive health, including healthy controls, subjective cognitive decline (SCD), and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) [1]. Participants will undergo comprehensive clinical evaluation including brain MRI, extensive cognitive assessments, clinical phenotyping, and blood biomarker testing [1]. A key component of the assessment protocol involves utilizing the PREMAZ digital memory test to capture digital phenotypes alongside traditional measures [1]. This rigorous approach ensures that structural changes in the brain are analyzed in conjunction with digital cognitive testing and neuropsychological testing [1].
Patient recruitment for this extensive study is scheduled to begin in September 2026, following the announcement made earlier in August [1]. The study plans to enroll over 1,200 participants across six clinical research collaborations, with more than 300 patients expected to undergo brain MRIs [1]. This scale of data collection is intended to provide a robust foundation for identifying early-stage cognitive impairment markers [1]. The inclusion of blood investigations further enhances the multimodal nature of the dataset, allowing for correlations between biological markers and cognitive performance [1].
Technological Foundations
Prema Cognition, founded in 2023 by Dr. Julia Cooney and Cameron Kirkpatrick, is collaborating with the University of Cambridge Memory Lab and Fortis Hospitals in India on this clinical characterization study [1]. The company launched the PREMAZ digital cognitive assessment 12 months ago in August 2025 and has since expanded into more than 30 clinics across the UK and US [1]. The test is based upon 10 years of research at Cambridge University, providing a strong academic backbone to the commercial tool [2]. This lineage suggests a high degree of scientific validation prior to its current deployment in clinical settings [2].
The PREMAZ test is designed to identify patients earlier in the course of their disease, support the selection of the right patients for clinical trials, and support the assessment of cognitive changes in clinical trials [2]. Digital health approaches are considered one of the important pillars which need to be developed to drive innovation in service of all the millions of patients and families affected by dementia [2]. The integration of such tools into a large-scale study validates their utility in a research context beyond individual clinic use [2]. This technological integration is critical for scaling cognitive assessment capabilities globally [2].
Global Implications
The collaboration represents an important step towards a future where dementia research better reflects the global population [1]. By expanding diverse clinical data beyond Western populations, the study aims to mitigate biases inherent in previous research cohorts [1]. As new medicines are developed and understanding of preventive measures increases, the ability to measure cognitive performance and define normal cognitive decline becomes increasingly important [2]. This study directly addresses the enormous unmet medical need associated with dementia care and treatment [2].
Ultimately, the ability to track responses to interventions, whether preventive or therapeutic, will allow researchers to gauge their benefit more accurately [2]. The success of this initiative could potentially transform early diagnostic pathways and reduce long-term healthcare liabilities [1]. Stakeholders anticipate that the findings will open new commercial avenues within the global medtech and biopharmaceutical sectors [1]. The outcomes of this study are expected to influence standard practices in dementia detection and management worldwide [1].