Clinical Trial Media, a global clinical trial participant recruitment and retention company that works with pharmaceutical companies through all stages of clinical research, today announced it has enrolled over 1,000 participants for Alzheimer’s Disease clinical trials in the last two years alone. The company has been critical to contributing more than 45% of study participants across multiple Alzheimer’s Disease trials, as recent breakthroughs give new energy to research of a disease that affects over six million Americans. It has achieved this through a proprietary approach that pairs data-driven technology with the human touch necessary to enroll and retain participants.

There have recently been major breakthroughs in Alzheimer’s research, with two drugs approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat the disease. Because Alzheimer’s is a progressive neurological disease that can affect many functions as it spreads through the brain, it is notoriously difficult to recruit for research. Individuals who had mild cases four years ago, for instance, might be moderate or severe now, making participating in earlier stage trials no longer possible. People living with Alzheimer’s also need a caregiver to join them throughout the sometimes years-long trial process and often have comorbidities or other underlying factors, typical of their age, that can limit their ability to participate.

Despite these challenges, Clinical Trial Media has successfully recruited participants for 15 Alzheimer’s, dementia and memory loss clinical trials in the last five years and has identified over 600,000 people living with Alzheimer's as potential candidates. These individuals are among the more than two million people that Clinical Trial Media has added to a community of potential candidates for current and future clinical studies across therapeutic areas.

The company’s success in recruiting for Alzheimer’s studies is due in large part to its ability to screen participants, at scale, through a proprietary technology platform it has built from the ground up. Using carefully developed algorithms honed by machine learning, Clinical Trial Media is able to leverage data to expedite participant identification, enrollment and progression through the clinical trial process. During pre-screening, the company’s team of skilled nurses conduct deep assessments to properly pair participants with the right studies. These nurses additionally serve as personal guides throughout the duration of studies to give participants human care every step of the way.

“We’re working on studies that, in the short term, will result in better treatments–and in the long term, hopefully result in a cure or even a vaccine,” said Cara Brant, CEO of Clinical Trial Media. “Our part of that mission is not just recruiting people into trials; it’s leveraging our retention services to keep them there. This is particularly challenging in Alzheimer’s trials considering the nature of the disease and the nuanced needs that come with it. We credit our success to a delicate balance of technology, data-backed decisions and, critically, human touch.”

Issues in participant recruitment and retention are leading causes of delays in clinical trials and increasing costs in a process that can already amount to over a billion dollars. Clinical Trial Media is currently recruiting for dozens of clinical trials around the world, across adult and pediatric therapeutic areas, ranging from Alzheimer’s and diabetes, to obesity, autoimmune disorders, and more. It has also identified more than 50 other health conditions for potential future clinical trials, for which it is actively attracting potentially interested participants via its ExploreClinicalResearch.com portal.