People aged over 75 in the UK are increasingly being excluded from medical research due to arbitrary age limits, raising concerns among leading charities and research organizations that this practice could delay the development of vital treatments.
Many clinical trials impose age cut-offs, often citing concerns about the frailty of older participants or assumptions that age might diminish the effectiveness of the treatments being tested.
However, these restrictions contribute to significant health inequities by sidelining a crucial demographic, according to more than 40 charities and prominent research funders, including the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), Cancer Research UK, the British Heart Foundation, and the Medical Research Council.
In a joint statement, these organizations condemned the age barriers as unethical, emphasizing that excluding older adults results in research that does not reflect the populations most affected by disease.
The statement noted: “These restrictions can lead to treatments that are less effective for the very people who most need support. Such exclusions are rarely justified and conflict with the principles of equity and scientific rigor.”
Dementia research exemplifies this issue, with only one in ten individuals living with the disease offered a chance to participate in studies. The Alzheimer’s Society identifies low participation as one of the main hurdles impeding progress in dementia treatments.
Chief Medical Officer Prof Chris Whitty highlighted that older adults are “frequently left out of research that directly affects their care,” despite having the “highest levels of need.” He warned that this exclusion creates evidence gaps and results in treatments that are less tailored and potentially less effective for older patients. “As the population ages, it is critical that research reflects the demographics it aims to serve,” he said.
The practice of excluding older participants is often driven by misconceptions that their multiple health conditions might skew results, or by trial designs that are not accommodating—such as frequent, distant visits to testing centers that can be challenging for elderly participants.
The NIHR, the UK’s largest health research funder, described the low involvement of older adults as both a scientific and ethical issue. Prof Terry Quinn, NIHR’s ageing lead, stated, “We should not assume treatments that work in younger, healthier people will have the same effect in older adults. Excluding the main users of health and social care is inefficient and risks misleading conclusions.”
Health Minister Karin Smyth stressed the urgency of including older adults in research, noting, “Older people face higher rates of conditions like cancer and dementia, yet only one in seven research participants are over 75.
To ensure future treatments work for everyone, older people must be part of the research that develops them.” She added that the government’s 10-year health plan aims to boost research efforts, including a UK-wide recruitment drive by the NIHR to increase participant diversity.
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