I am sure you all remember that September is World Alzheimer’s Month and the 21^st World Alzheimer’s Day. Simultaneously, Alzheimer’s Disease International (ADI) published its World Alzheimer Report 2026, “A new era in dementia clinical trials,” based on interviews with more than 45 leaders in the field. Its conclusion: “The central challenge is no longer discovery alone. It is delivery.”

The report documents 158 drugs in 192 Alzheimer’s trials, requiring around 55,000 participants. Because screen-failure rates are high, reaching 88% in preclinical trials, at least 350,000 people would need to apply. Just one astounding challenge within the overall problem.

It also highlights a major equity gap. Women, who account for nearly two-thirds of people living with Alzheimer’s, are underrepresented in trials relative to their disease burden, and sex-disaggregated safety and efficacy outcomes are almost never reported. Additionally more than 60% of people with dementia live in low- and middle-income countries, the regions least represented in research.

ADI’s seven recommendations include investing in early detection pathways, embedding diversity into trial design from the outset and reducing participant burden. The report also calls for trials that measure independence, daily functioning, quality of life and that it is time for dementia to have its own breakthrough moment.

To ensure that this breakthrough not only reaches people living with dementia, but also reaches women, I’m looking forward to bringing together the Global BHP BrainTrust Working Group at Lausanne XIII on October 6th, where we will work together on a 2030 Action Plan. Not just a conversation but meaningful impact. It’s a topic close to my heart, but crucial for the whole world.