Uploaded October 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Alzheimer’s disease has become one of the most urgent global health challenges. As populations aged, the need for earlier detection and more effective interventions grew increasingly critical. Most people were still diagnosed only after significant cognitive decline had occurred. Emerging blood-based biomarkers offered new possibilities to detect Alzheimer’s pathology years before symptoms appeared. Early diagnosis had the potential to improve patient outcomes, support families, and reduce long-term strain on health systems.
This World Health Summit 2025 Global Health Lab session – co-hosted by Eli Lilly – explored the Alzheimer’s disease continuum and highlighted why early diagnosis mattered. The session was moderated by Alexia Zurkuhlen (German Council on Aging). It examined how new diagnostic tools, including blood-based biomarkers, could shift Alzheimer’s care toward earlier intervention and better long-term planning.
Speakers Christopher Murray (IHME), Katrin Seeher (WHO), Alice Farquharson (Eli Lilly), and Friederike de Maeyer (Dementia Self-Help Austria) shared perspectives from global health research, clinical practice, industry, and patient advocacy. They discussed how early detection could be integrated into health systems and what social, economic, and policy considerations needed to be addressed.
The session underscored the transformative potential of early diagnosis to reshape the future of Alzheimer’s care and improve outcomes for individuals, families, and communities.
The World Health Summit is the leading global platform bringing together science, politics, civil society, and the private sector to catalyze collaborative and innovative solutions for key health priorities. Learn more: worldhealthsummit.org
Alzheimer’s disease has become one of the most urgent global health challenges. As populations aged, the need for earlier detection and more effective interventions grew increasingly critical. Most people were still diagnosed only after significant cognitive decline had occurred. Emerging blood-based biomarkers offered new possibilities to detect Alzheimer’s pathology years before symptoms appeared. Early diagnosis had the potential to improve patient outcomes, support families, and reduce long-term strain on health systems.
This World Health Summit 2025 Global Health Lab session – co-hosted by Eli Lilly – explored the Alzheimer’s disease continuum and highlighted why early diagnosis mattered. The session was moderated by Alexia Zurkuhlen (German Council on Aging). It examined how new diagnostic tools, including blood-based biomarkers, could shift Alzheimer’s care toward earlier intervention and better long-term planning.
Speakers Christopher Murray (IHME), Katrin Seeher (WHO), Alice Farquharson (Eli Lilly), and Friederike de Maeyer (Dementia Self-Help Austria) shared perspectives from global health research, clinical practice, industry, and patient advocacy. They discussed how early detection could be integrated into health systems and what social, economic, and policy considerations needed to be addressed.
The session underscored the transformative potential of early diagnosis to reshape the future of Alzheimer’s care and improve outcomes for individuals, families, and communities.
The World Health Summit is the leading global platform bringing together science, politics, civil society, and the private sector to catalyze collaborative and innovative solutions for key health priorities. Learn more: worldhealthsummit.org
