The world’s richest countries have set out to find a cure for dementia within 12 years, it was announced yesterday.
The project will be backed by the appointment of a global envoy for dementia innovation, UK Prime Minister David Cameron said.
The proposals emerged from the first world dementia summit, organised by the UK as part of its presidency of the G8 club of wealthy nations.
Mr Cameron said: "It doesn’t matter whether you’re in London or Los Angeles, in rural India or urban Japan – dementia steals lives, it wrecks families, it breaks hearts and that is why all of us here are so utterly determined to beat it.
"In generations past, the world came together to take on the great killers. We stood against malaria, cancer, HIV and AIDS and we are just as resolute today. I want December 11th 2013 to go down as the day that the global fight-back began."
The project was welcomed by the World Health Organisation.
Director general Dr Margaret Chan said: "WHO warmly welcomes the aims and outcomes of this summit, with its ground-breaking proposals to stimulate research and development to catch up with a runaway human tragedy."
Meanwhile in the UK GP leaders claimed that government allocations to improve dementia care would not "scratch the surface."
Royal College of GPs chair Dr Maureen Baker warned of a "rapidly increasing" number of people affected by dementia.
She said: "Further research will provide stronger evidence on which to base our decisions about diagnosis and treatment, but we need to ensure that funding also goes into frontline care so that GPs can provide more services in the community that will properly support people beyond diagnosis and help them live healthy, independent and productive lives for as long as possible."
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