Alzheimer's diagnostics: earlier detection, better disease monitoring

Alzheimer's diagnostics are developing across several parts of the care pathway, from laboratory testing and digital longitudinal monitoring to prospective point-of-care systems. Rather than relying exclusively on invasive or resource-intensive procedures, emerging approaches aim to enable earlier diagnostic decision-making while reducing the burden on both healthcare professionals and patients.

One of the first bottlenecks in Alzheimer's diagnostics often arises during the initial diagnostic assessment. Resource-intensive procedures such as cerebrospinal fluid analysis or PET imaging are not uniformly available and may create barriers to early diagnostic assessment. Blood-based biomarkers are intended to close this gap by simplifying the entry point into the diagnostic pathway.

To support this approach, Sysmex Europe has introduced the HISCL platform, which analyzes Alzheimer's biomarkers from a standard blood sample in just 17 minutes. Independent studies conducted at Amsterdam UMC and Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau in Barcelona have demonstrated the assays' high diagnostic accuracy. Because the platform can be integrated into existing automated laboratory workflows, results can be delivered without requiring dedicated Alzheimer's testing infrastructure. This supports earlier diagnostic stratification and helps target more advanced diagnostic procedures to patients who are most likely to benefit from them.

The diagnostic process, however, does not end with the initial diagnosis. In neurodegenerative diseases, a key challenge is tracking disease progression reliably over time without requiring patients to return to the clinic for frequent, comprehensive evaluations.

This is the focus of the NeuLogiq platform developed by Cumulus Neuroscience. In a study published in Frontiers in Digital Health, researchers demonstrated that people living with mild Alzheimer's disease dementia were able to perform EEG recordings and cognitive assessments independently at home over a 12-month period. The platform combines a wireless EEG headset with tablet-based cognitive assessments, enabling objective measurements at regular intervals. More frequent measurements could help capture day-to-day variation that infrequent clinic-based assessments may miss.

Alongside advances in laboratory diagnostics and digital monitoring, diagnostic technologies themselves are moving closer to the point of care. The goal is to make diagnostic testing available where the first signs of cognitive impairment are evaluated.

Kaiserslautern University of Applied Sciences is pursuing this approach through the MeXenz research project. Beginning in January 2027, researchers at Kaiserslautern University of Applied Sciences plan to develop MXene-based electrochemical biosensors capable of detecting multiple dementia biomarkers simultaneously. The long-term objective is to create a point-of-care diagnostic system for physician offices and long-term care facilities. If successful, such a system could provide diagnostic information more rapidly at the site of care and streamline the assessment of early cognitive impairment. At present, however, the project remains in the research phase, with development and validation of the biosensor platform using biological and clinical samples as its primary focus.

These developments illustrate that progress in Alzheimer's diagnostics is driven not only by new biomarkers or sensing technologies but also by their contribution to different stages of the care pathway. They facilitate earlier diagnostic assessment, enable long-term monitoring, or bring diagnostic procedures closer to the point of care. Together, these developments represent a shift toward earlier, more patient-centered, and more continuous forms of diagnostic assessment in laboratories, clinical settings, and at home.

Sources: Sysmex, Cumulus, Hochschule Kaiserslautern University of Applied Sciences