The MADRC is a multi-institutional consortium of Harvard affiliated facilities where physician-scientists and researchers collaborate to accelerate the pace of Alzheimer's disease research advances.

One of approximately 30 federally-funded Alzheimer's Disease Centers (ADCs), the center was founded after an Act of Congress in 1984 (Public Health Service Act, section 445) made funding available.

The MADRC’s mission:

• To conduct state-of-the-art neuroscience research directed towards uncovering the causes, treatment, and the prevention of AD and related neurodegenerative disorders
• To support collaborative dementia research funded outside of the ADC, nationally and internationally
• To present a fertile training environment for promising students, clinicians and scientists
• To disseminate awareness and education via active outreach to professionals and care-partners in local communities

The founding director, John H. Growdon, MD, and the program director, Bradley T. Hyman, MD, PhD, are members of the Memory Disorders unit at the Massachusetts General Hospital Department of Neurology.