Scott Mitchell has today (Wednesday 20 March) been named the People’s Champion of the ambitious national Mission to beat dementia, which was launched in memory of his late wife Dame Barbara Windsor, by the UK Government.
The announcement will be formally made at a roundtable and reception today at No.10, where charities, academics, investors, business leaders and people with lived experience will come together to further accelerate efforts to tackle this devastating illness. The event is taking place to thank all those involved in supporting dementia research, including charities right across the UK, whose fundraising is vital to this ongoing work.
The appointment comes alongside £6 million in funding to boost clinical trials and innovation, including work in Northern Ireland on how AI can be used to support dementia diagnosis, and research in Scotland looking at how ‘biomarkers’ found in blood can help detect the disease early.
The ‘Dame Barbara Windsor Dementia Mission’ was launched in August 2022, in honour of Dame Barbara and the millions of other people and their loved ones who have had their lives ruined by dementia. It forms part of the Government’s commitment to double funding for dementia research to £160 million a year by 2024 to 2025. Co-Chairs, Hilary Evans and Nadeem Sarwar, were appointed in March 2023 to spearhead delivery of the Mission.
Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology Michelle Donelan said:
“Dementia is an incredibly cruel disease, and as the leading cause of death in the UK nearly every family is affected by it in some way. Dame Barbara’s brave campaigning, supported by her husband Scott Mitchell, made that devastating impact powerfully clear to everyone.
“As a life sciences world leader, the UK is uniquely placed to make a difference in the fight against dementia, and by bringing academia, industry, the NHS and those with lived experience together we are determined to do just that. Now we need to keep mobilising the resources needed to fuel this vital work – from the funds raised by charities large and small, to the industry backing that’s crucial to delivering more breakthroughs.”
Health and Social Care Secretary Victoria Atkins said:
“Dementia can be a devastating illness and I want to see the Dementia Mission driving forward research to unlock the next generation of treatments in Dame Barbara’s memory.
“The government challenged G7 nations in 2013 to find new treatments for dementia and I hope we are now on the cusp of a breakthrough, with new drugs set to slow the impact of this terrible condition.
“I am working with the NHS charities and the life sciences industry to make sure we are ready to roll out new treatments safely and rapidly.”
Scott Mitchell said:
“I am honoured to be appointed as the People’s Champion of the Dame Barbara Windsor Dementia Mission, that was named after my late wife. She lived an extraordinary life, and her brave campaigning made a powerful impact on so many others who were going through the same.
“I want to keep her story alive and help bring to light the stories of so many others who are affected by this terrible disease. I want to use this role to ensure that the path of the Dementia Mission puts people at its heart, so that together we can tackle dementia and have a positive impact on all those affected.”
Scott Mitchell has been appointed to this unique new role in recognition of his profound contribution to the nation’s awareness of dementia, as a vocal advocate for both research and care. As People’s Champion, he will ensure the Dementia Mission’s work is grounded in the real-world experiences of those with dementia, as well as their caregivers.
At its core, the Mission is about developing innovative research tools and boosting the number and speed of clinical trials in dementia and neurodegeneration. To this end, today also marks the launch of the Neurodegeneration Initiative. It is being set up to give industry and academics the tools they need to both speed up, and boost the number of, dementia clinical trials. This effort will be convened by Medicines Discovery Catapult, the UK’s independent and not-for-profit drug discovery innovation centre. To ensure this work has the foremost scientific and technical guidance, and industry relevance, a Scientific Advisory Board is being established. This will be chaired by Dr Ruth McKernan CBE, a former Senior Vice President at Pfizer and former Executive Chair at Innovate UK, and is currently a Venture Partner at SV Health Investors, leading the creation of new dementia companies.
On top of this, today ten projects at the cutting edge of dementia research are being awarded a share of £6 million, through Innovate UK’s Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) dementia biomarker tools competition. The work being supported ranges from an AI tool designed to improve the accuracy of blood tests for dementia, to using retinal scans to detect early-onset dementia decades before symptoms. This funding will help develop tools and technologies to transform and advance clinical trials and precision therapies for people with dementia.
Dr Ruth McKernan CBE said:
“I am delighted to take on the role of the Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board. This initiative, working collectively, is poised to make a great impact; we now have the first drugs to show that Alzheimer’s is a modifiable disease and there are more than 100 different drugs in various stages of clinical trials. The biomarker work in particular should help us match each patient to the best emerging therapies for their neurodegenerative disorder.”
All of this builds on the already-ongoing work to overhaul how we diagnose and treat dementia, through the Mission. With up to £20 million being invested through the Medical Research Council, the Dementia Trials Accelerator is delivering new measures to boost clinical trials, including rolling out AI technologies to support researchers, and establishing a trial-ready cohort of circa 20,000 at risk individuals who could be available for community-based trials at short notice. Nearly £50 million funding was announced in January, to support further work on clinical trials through The National Institute for Health and Social Care Research’s Dementia-Translational Research Collaboration Trials Network (D-TRC-TN) led by Dr Catherine Mummery.
By bringing industry leaders together at No10, today is also a call to action, for private and philanthropic partners to partner with the Mission, building on all of this Government backing, and the world-leading strengths of the UK’s £94 billion life sciences sector, encouraging them to bring their own investment to bear on our scientists’, clinicians’ and innovators’ efforts to tackle dementia.
Not only this, partners from across the Health System – including NHS England, NICE and MHRA are working together to ensure timely access to new, groundbreaking clinically and cost effective new medicines for Alzheimer’s Disease.
Hilary Evans, Co-Chair of the Dame Barbara Windsor Dementia Mission and Chief Executive of Alzheimer’s Research UK, said:
“The Dame Barbara Windsor Dementia Mission is grounded in collaboration across the whole dementia landscape, from researchers to regulatory bodies, and of course the NHS. But we must go further to save people from the heartbreak of dementia sooner. I’m delighted that Scott will be taking on the role of People’s Champion, his support is essential to the Mission being a powerful driving force for change, and people with dementia deserve no less.
“New treatments for Alzheimer’s disease – the leading cause of dementia – are finally on the horizon, we are now in the strongest position yet to bring an end to the devastation this condition inflicts on people and society. Now we must keep up this momentum and ensure the UK is at the forefront of tackling dementia for years to come.’’
Professor Nadeem Sarwar, Co-Chair of the Dame Barbara Windsor Dementia Mission, said:
“This year, we’ve taken significant steps in shaping the foundational framework of the Dementia Mission by conducting thorough landscape analyses to position it for maximum effectiveness. Additionally, we’ve commenced work on substantial elements of the Mission, including securing up to £20 million in funding to launch a Dementia Trials Accelerator, delivered through the Medical Research Council, to establish an AI-enabled, community-based clinical trials platform that will enhance the speed and quality, and reduce the cost of large-scale clinical trials for dementia. As we transition into the next year, our focus is to utilise our insights to unify individual advancements and drive collective action.”
June Raine, CEO of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said:
“As an enabling regulator putting patients at the heart of everything we do, MHRA is excited to work with the Dementia Mission. As well as developing innovative clinical trial regulation, we support novel approaches for surrogate marker detection, and encourage adaptive licensing approaches for new disease modifying therapies for dementia and other neurodegenerative conditions. These diseases are complex, and therefore the regulatory challenges are especially complex, so we must work in partnership to facilitate faster, safer access to much needed potential new treatments and diagnostics.”
Sam Roberts, CEO of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) said:
“NICE is excited to work with the Dementia Mission to bring the best care to patients fast, whilst ensuring value for the taxpayer. We have been working hard in this area in preparation for the first wave of new disease modifying treatments for dementia and other neurodegenerative conditions that are coming through. They bring with them new challenges and opportunities in how we assess their value. By working in close partnership with the Mission, MHRA and NHS England, we aim to ensure NHS patients receive fast and equitable access to safe and cost effective new treatments.”
Prof Siddharthan Chandran, Director of the UK Dementia Research Institute, said:
“The launch of the Dementia Trials Accelerator, part of the Dame Barbara Windsor Dementia Mission, marks a turning point for anyone touched by a neurodegenerative condition. There will be no more missed opportunities for those living with dementia to participate in clinical trials in the UK – it’s time for change.
“The UK Dementia Research Institute is teaming up with Health Data Research UK to help position the UK as a leader in definitive clinical trials for dementia and related neurodegenerative conditions. We look forward to working with partners including the UK Government, NHS, MDC, researchers and industry to deliver meaningful change for people living with or at risk of dementia.”
Professor Andrew Morris, Director of Health Data Research UK, said:
“Dementia is a devastating condition for patients and their loved ones. With almost 1 million people living with dementia in the UK, finding new ways to diagnose, manage and treat the condition is one of the greatest challenges in health.
“A bold and ambitious new programme in dementia will bring two of the UK’s leading national institutes together for the first time – Health Data Research UK (HDR UK) and the UK Dementia Research Institute (UK DRI) – working with patients, the NHS, industry and researchers from across the UK.
“Getting the data right can accelerate research and speed clinical trials. From having pre-screened trial volunteers to designing smarter trials and delivering faster results, it will all be underpinned by new UK-wide infrastructure and the power of data.”
Alzheimer’s Society CEO, Kate Lee, said:
“Scott Mitchell and Dame Barbara Windsor’s candid sharing of their experiences have brought much-needed attention to dementia, the UK’s biggest killer.
“It’s really important that people living with dementia are at the heart of research, so the appointment of a People’s Champion to the Mission is excellent news and signals a very welcome focus on emphasizing the importance of involving those directly affected by the condition.
“The advent of new treatments brings tangible hope and will change how dementia is viewed by society and our healthcare system. Through decisive and prompt action from the Government and NHS, we have the opportunity to revolutionise how dementia is diagnosed and managed.”
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