GROUNDBREAKING ALZHEIMER’S RESEARCH FROM THE SZEGED-BASED HUNGARIAN COMPANY PHARMACOIDEA KFT.
Reuters Events, a professional platform linked to the globally renowned Reuters media group, recognises the most significant innovations in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries each year.
SynDecAlz Detect™ a new diagnostic procedure for the early detection of Alzheimer’s disease from blood developed by Pharmacoidea Ltd., based in Szeged, Hungary has been recognised and received the prestigious 2025 Reuters Events Pharma Awards- in the category of "Most Valuable Scientific Breakthrough/Discovery".
SynDecAlz Detect™ is a new diagnostic procedure that enables the early detection of Alzheimer's disease through a simple blood test.
Unlike expensive Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scans or invasive cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) tests, this method utilizes standard, widely available ELISA technology, making early diagnosis more accessible and affordable as it only needs a routine blood sample and uses standard ELISA technology that's already widely available in hospitals and labs globally
“Our test is minimally invasive, low cost, and compatible with standard laboratory infrastructure,” Letoha says. “That makes it suitable even for low-cost hospital settings.”
This design enables fast adoption and integration across healthcare systems, from high-income countries seeking to optimise specialist workflows to primary care environments in low-resource settings, where early identification has the greatest impact.
SynDecAlz Detect could represent a strategic inflection point in how healthcare systems will identify, treat, and manage neurodegenerative disease. Pharmacoidea’s outstanding research has been supported by the National Research, Development and Innovation Fund of Hungary, and will continue to receive support.
By lowering costs and broadening access, SynDecAlz Detect has the potential to redefine how early-stage Alzheimer’s is detected, bringing advanced diagnostics from elite clinics to everyday healthcare.
Recent research published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences (Hudák, Letoha et al., 2025) showed that SDC3 levels in blood cells are significantly elevated in Alzheimer’s patients, allowing for high diagnostic accuracy.
“This nomination is a great recognition not only for us but also for Hungarian research and development, as it provides an opportunity for domestic innovation to gain attention at the leading international forum of the pharmaceutical industry” – said Dr Tamás Letoha, Managing Director of Pharmacoidea. He also pointed out “Basically, all this is the culmination of about 20 years of research. Our invention is about detecting Alzheimer’s disease at its earliest stages, before neurodegeneration takes over.”
The "Most Valuable Scientific Breakthrough/Discovery" category award was presented at the Reuters Events international conference, attended by the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies and researchers. This is a significant recognition for Hungarian research and development on a global stage.