Uniting with global partners to speed up the search for better treatments
Professor David Dexter highlights how Parkinson’s UK is working with other organisations and people living with Parkinson’s to deliver new treatments, faster.
Professor David Dexter - our Director of Research
Over the past few years we have seen the first large scale examples of different organisations coming together to tackle the challenges that face Parkinson’s research. We are part of global collaborations looking to bring the right people together, from pharmaceutical companies, regulators and charities to people with Parkinson’s. The overall aim is to get new treatments, faster.
We continue to fund important research to identify and develop new and better treatments for Parkinson’s but we are also influencing change on multiple fronts. It is important that the way potential treatments are trialled and approved isn’t slowing down new treatments getting into the hands of people with Parkinson's.
Uniting with global partners allows everyone to sing with one voice. When things are done together the impact is bigger, the voice is louder and people take notice, to push forward Parkinson’s research.
What the global collaborations are aiming to address
We are now part of international initiatives looking to:
- Identify and tackle unmet needs for the Parkinson’s community in terms of new treatments and research
- Share best practises when planning research studies
- Create clear and consistent information to support and encourage more people with Parkinson’s to consider taking part in research
- Ensure that people affected by Parkinson's are shaping clinical trials throughout the process, from the design to communication of the results
- Share data and what’s being funded to avoid duplication and identify opportunities to fund things together
- Move towards better tools for improving clinical trials: from selecting the right people to trial new treatments, to objective ways to measure the success of potential treatments
- Group people into stages of Parkinson’s to move towards a more personalised treatment approach.
Spotlighting examples of progress
Work towards agreed tools to improve clinical trials
There has been a recent flurry of work towards finding tests to identify Parkinson’s earlier and to help understand the causes of someone’s condition. These tests are first being explored as a research tool.
In January 2024 a paper was published from a global coalition we are involved in, recommending the use of two tests as a starting point in Parkinson’s research.
- A new test that can identify misfolded alpha-synuclein, a protein that is a feature of Parkinson’s, in fluid taken from the spine via a lumbar puncture.
- A brain scan called a DaTSCAN that can tell if there is a lack of dopamine, the chemical that decreases over time in Parkinson’s, inside the brain.
The hope is that using these 2 tests in combination could help researchers select the right people to take part in a study. This is currently going through the approval process before it can be used as a tool in clinical trials. We are also part of work looking to develop a blood based version of the alpha-synuclein test, a more patient friendly method.
Read more about the Staging Coalition’s published framework on our research news pages.
Getting closer to better and consistent ways to measure the success of new treatments in research
We are also part of collaborative pieces of work looking at reviewing how Parkinson’s is currently assessed and measured. Most clinical trials currently rely heavily on observations of symptoms made by clinicians to measure the success of a potential treatment. But this doesn't offer a very sensitive way to measure whether a potential treatment is benefiting an individual, especially if they have just been diagnosed where Parkinson’s progression is slow.
We have been working in partnership with pharmaceutical company UCB, the US Parkinson’s Foundation and people with Parkinson’s to develop two new scales that better take into account the symptoms and their impact on daily function in the early stages of Parkinson’s. These tools are currently going through the approval process to then be used in clinical research.
Another solution being investigated is the potential for digital technology to provide round the clock data on someone’s Parkinson’s symptoms, particularly in a research setting. This could help give a much clearer picture of how a potential treatment is benefiting an individual. A collaborative project called MOBILISE-D is in the process of developing and improving technology to accurately measure mobility. It's looking at how to use sensors to assess movement symptoms with research in mind.
Getting you new treatments, faster
We are leaving no stone unturned. As research continues to gather momentum it is important now more than ever to make sure research is efficient and equipped to succeed. Uniting to tackle some of the challenges that have previously slowed down research, we are making progress together.