Blood Test Meets AI Platform: New Partnership Aims to Close Alzheimer's Diagnostic Gap for Millions

A new collaboration between Lucent Diagnostics and Tempus AI could dramatically expand access to Alzheimer's biomarker testing by embedding blood-based diagnostics directly into neurologists' existing electronic health record systems. The partnership, announced July 24, 2026, addresses a striking care gap: despite more than 7 million Americans living with Alzheimer's disease, only a small fraction are ever evaluated for treatment eligibility using biomarker testing.

The integration brings Lucent's LucentAD Complete multi-biomarker blood test into Tempus Next, an AI-enabled care pathway intelligence platform. By making the test orderable through familiar EHR workflows, the companies aim to remove friction that has historically limited biomarker testing adoption in neurology practices.

Streamlining the Diagnostic Pathway

Traditional Alzheimer's biomarker testing has required either lumbar puncture for cerebrospinal fluid analysis or amyloid PET imaging—both invasive, expensive, or logistically challenging procedures that create barriers to widespread use. Blood-based testing offers a more accessible alternative, but adoption has been hampered by the need for separate ordering systems and unfamiliar workflows.

The Lucent-Tempus partnership tackles this adoption challenge head-on. Neurologists using Tempus Next can now order the LucentAD Complete panel without leaving their existing clinical decision-making environment. The test leverages Simoa (Single Molecule Array) technology, an ultra-sensitive biomarker detection platform developed by Quanterix Corporation, Lucent's parent company.

Lucent Diagnostics was created in 2023 specifically as a commercial brand to bridge the gap between research-grade biomarker technology and clinical practice. This latest partnership represents a significant step in that mission.

Strategic Implications for Diagnostic Innovation

The collaboration illustrates an emerging model for how specialized diagnostic companies can achieve clinical adoption in competitive markets. Rather than building standalone ordering infrastructure, Lucent is embedding its testing within an AI-driven platform that already integrates with provider workflows and identifies care gaps.

For Tempus AI, the partnership expands its neurology capabilities and demonstrates the platform's value proposition: not just identifying patients who may benefit from testing, but facilitating immediate action through integrated ordering. As Alzheimer's treatment options continue to expand—particularly disease-modifying therapies requiring biomarker confirmation—this type of workflow integration becomes increasingly valuable.

"This collaboration enables us to reach neurologists at the point of care, embedding guideline-directed biomarker testing into the clinical workflows they already use," said Everett Cunningham, CEO of Quanterix, in announcing the partnership.

Closing the Treatment Access Gap

The ultimate beneficiaries of streamlined biomarker testing are patients who might otherwise never be evaluated for emerging Alzheimer's therapies. With millions of Americans living with the disease but only a fraction undergoing biomarker confirmation, the potential impact of reducing diagnostic friction is substantial.

Blood-based testing also offers practical advantages beyond workflow integration: no radiation exposure, no specialized imaging facilities required, and significantly less patient burden compared to traditional methods. As the technology matures and reimbursement pathways solidify, partnerships like this one may become the standard model for bringing advanced diagnostics into routine neurological care.

The integration is now live, making LucentAD Complete available to neurologists using the Tempus Next platform nationwide.

Sources

1. Lucent Diagnostics, Tempus Collaborate on Blood-Based Alzheimer's Biomarker Testing — MPO Magazine