AD-SMART
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Alzheimer’s Disease - Systematic Multi-Arm Adaptive Randomised Trial (AD-SMART)
IRAS ID
1012878
Contact name
Paresh Malhotra
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University College London
ISRCTN Number
ISRCTN17108793
Research summary
Research into Alzheimer’s disease is making progress but big challenges remain. Our proposed project, AD-SMART, is a quicker, more efficient way of identifying effective treatments for Alzheimer’s. Our trial will be for a period of about four years. It will test whether either of two existing medicines can relieve and improve symptoms in patients with Alzheimer’s. Currently, they are used for other illnesses and are known to be safe and effective for those diseases. We will also assess each treatment’s side effects (if any), whether they improve quality of life, and offer the health service sufficient value for money.
AD-SMART will recruit participants with symptoms of Alzheimer’s to take part in this research. The trial will compare current standard care and each of two treatments with that care. There will also be a dummy treatment, known as a placebo. The drugs were chosen by an international panel review process together with patient and public input. It was funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research.
A drug treatment will be considered successful in AD-SMART if, over 18 months, it is both safe and shows a meaningful difference to patients’ quality of life in one or more of the following measures:
• cognitive symptoms (e.g. memory, problem solving).
• ability to perform daily activities (e.g. showering, cooking).
These will be tested in person at the start of the trial, and at intervals of six, twelve and eighteen months.
Our research team will collect blood samples at the same time as these clinical tests to learn how changes in levels of certain blood markers are linked to the progression and severity of Alzheimer’s. We will also conduct MRI scans at the start and end of the trial to look for changes in brain structure.
This information will allow us to improve our understanding of how the treatments work to reduce symptoms and affect progression of the disease.REC name
London - Fulham Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
25/LO/0919
Date of REC Opinion
20 Jan 2026
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion