Cam-CAN will help change our perspectives on ageing
Although the popular view of ageing is as a process of decline and decay, new scientific discoveries suggest a very different view - one in which the brain remains flexible and adaptable across the lifespan, with many cognitive abilities being preserved. A major aim of our research is to understand the nature of these brain-cognition relationships across the lifespan, and to change the perspective of ageing in the 21st century by highlighting the importance of abilities that are maintained into old age.

Cam-CAN represents a population representative sample, providing data from multimodal neuroimaging, targeted cognitive measures, and epidemiology to support lifelong cognitive preservation.

Cam-CAN will examine lifelong development, not just old age
Our research takes a lifespan perspective to understanding how the mind and brain develop across the adult lifespan in order to preserve cognitive function. This research will include participants across the entire adult lifespan, aged 18 and up. Our aim is to understand how changes in the brain across the adult lifespan impact on cognitive functions like memory and attention. Our emphasis will be on determining the extent of neural flexibility and the potential for neural reorganisation to preserve cognitive functions.

Cam-CAN brings together researchers across diverse disciplines
This research requires the cooperation of researchers and collaborators across the UK to provide an interdisciplinary view of the ageing mind and brain. Our core research teams include members of research groups in Cambridge including the Departments of Psychology, Public Health and Primary Care, Psychiatry, Clinical Neurosciences, and Engineering in the University of Cambridge and the Medical Research Council Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit. Over 30 project researchers and collaborators will contribute to a new view of adult development that incorporates demographic, psychological, physical, and neural measures.