More and more people have Alzheimer's disease (AD) and related dementia. AD is associated with a high level of suffering for those affected and rising costs for the healthcare system. By 2023, more than seven million people will be living with dementia in the European Union. Some progress has been made recently in the search for effective treatments, and it has been proven that treatment in the early stages of the disease is most effective. Therefore, there is a need for scalable, cost-effective diagnostic markers, tools, and procedures to identify individuals at increased risk to select the most promising personalized measures to prevent or delay dementia.

Over the next four years, PREDICTOM will develop a platform for assessing dementia risks. The platform will enable early detection, allowing timely intervention and preventive treatment. It will be freely available, interoperable, and adaptable for use.

For the study, more than 4,000 test subjects will collect health data that will be fed into the platform. It will investigate whether the diagnosis can be brought closer to the patient by using samples taken at home (e.g., blood and saliva) to diagnose biomarkers. The platform uses artificial intelligence (AI) models to analyze the data of all biomarkers to identify patients at high risk of Alzheimer's and dementia. As a result, medication can be used in a more targeted and personalized way to prevent further cognitive decline and the development of dementia. In addition, PREDICTOM helps to make screening and diagnosis more accessible and individualized.

Fraunhofer SCAI is involved in the development and provision of AI-based risk models for Alzheimer's disease and supports the establishment of appropriate data management.

The PREDICTOM consortium comprises 30 international partners from 15 countries, representing industry, academia, civil society, and hospitals.

The project is part of the Innovative Health Initiative (IHI), a public-private partnership between the European Union and the European life science industries. The project began on 1 November 2023 and runs through 31 October 2027.

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