Leading Institutions Enroll First Alzheimer’s Patients Receiving Amyloid-Targeting Therapy in CARE PMR Study

April 17, 2024 — Hyperfine, Inc., a groundbreaking health technology company that has redefined brain imaging with the first FDA-cleared portable magnetic resonance (MR) brain imaging system— the Swoop system—announced that the first patients have been enrolled in the CARE PMR (Capturing ARIA Risk Equitably with Portable MR) observational study. The study is designed to assess the clinical utility and workflow benefits of Swoop system images acquired at infusion centers and clinics to help physicians detect amyloid-related imaging abnormalities (ARIA) in Alzheimer’s patients receiving amyloid-targeting therapy at the times specified in the labeling (before the fifth, seventh, and fourteenth infusions).

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia worldwide, affecting more than six million people in the U.S. alone1. Patients with Alzheimer’s can now be treated with amyloid-targeting therapy, which reduces the amyloid plaque burden in the brain. Potential side effects for patients using amyloid-targeting therapy exist, including ARIA, and patients are required to receive multiple MRI brain scans during their first year of treatment as included in the FDA-approved labeling for the medication.

“We’ll be evaluating whether portable MR brain imaging can reliably identify brain swelling and bleeding, which have been associated with amyloid-targeting therapies,” said Dr. Tammie Benzinger, professor of radiology and neurological surgery at the Washington School of Medicine and primary investigator of CARE PMR. “This information can help determine whether portable MR imaging—offered at the same time as anti-amyloid infusions—could lessen the inconvenience for patients.”

Mass General Brigham has also begun scanning Alzheimer’s patients with the Swoop® system to obtain longitudinal data as well as enroll patients in the CARE PMR protocol to screen for ARIA events. This work, led by Drs. Teresa Gomez-Isla and W. Taylor Kimberly, will evaluate the Swoop system to understand its potential role in the overall continuum of Alzheimer’s care.

“The newly approved amyloid-targeting therapy represents a major milestone in the global fight against Alzheimer’s, bringing hope of additional years of independent living to patients. The required MRI scans to image brain abnormalities in patients receiving amyloid-targeting therapy present workflow challenges for patients and providers,” said Hyperfine, Inc. President and CEO Maria Sainz. “Patients can be safely scanned with the Swoop system wherever in a healthcare setting is most convenient, and we believe that it greatly simplifies the workflow and provides significant benefits in care efficiency and cost. We look forward to investigating its potential as a screening tool and exploring how this accessible and affordable portable MRI modality can help address the challenges of access to care and equity challenges intrinsic to new treatments for this devastating global disease.”

The Swoop system is a portable, AI-powered, ultra-low-field MR brain imaging system designed to be available when and where physicians need it, potentially allowing for timelier treatment decisions. Brain images acquired with the Swoop system can help physicians diagnose a variety of neurological conditions without the delays, costs, and inconvenience of a conventional high-field MRI scan.

For more information: hyperfine.io