Study evaluating cannabinoids in dementia to be conducted at Northwell Health receives IRB approval; Cannformatics to present on Friday, November 7

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 6, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Cannformatics Inc., a biotechnology company advancing the use of metabolic biomarkers and artificial intelligence to personalize medical cannabis treatment, today announced that a proof-of-concept study to be conducted at Northwell Health on medical cannabis and dementia has received Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval and is cleared to begin patient recruitment.

The announcement coincides with the 2nd Annual New York State Medical Cannabis Symposium: Cannabinoids in Clinical Practice, hosted by the New York State Office of Cannabis Management and Northwell Health, where Cannformatics Co-founder and CEO Itzhak Kurek, Ph.D., will present on the Company's technology and applications. During his presentation on Friday, November 7, Dr. Kurek will also announce the launch and IRB approval of the dementia study, titled "Changes in salivary biomarkers in patients receiving Medical Cannabis Treatment for Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (MAC-BPSD): the potential of salivary biomarkers to identify and quantify positive responders." The research will evaluate how cannabinoids impact agitation, anxiety, and other Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD).

The study is led by Diana Martins-Welch, MD, associate professor at the Feinstein Institutes and Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, specialist in hospice and palliative medicine, along with co-investigators Edith Burns, MD, professor at the Feinstein Institutes and Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell and director of research for Northwell Health's Division of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine along with Kenneth R. Weinberg, MD, Chief Medical Officer of Cannabis Doctors of New York.

Cannformatics is providing its proprietary Cannabis-Responsive™ (C-Res™) biomarker platform, a saliva-based technology that identifies metabolic changes linked to cannabinoid use, for the study. It combines Northwell Health's clinical research leadership with Cannformatics' biomarker expertise to generate objective, quantifiable data on the effects of cannabinoids in dementia care.

"The IRB's approval marks a major milestone for Cannformatics as we expand our C-Res™ platform to address dementia, along with other conditions related to endocannabinoid system (ECS) imbalance, including autism, epilepsy, post-traumatic stress and anxiety," said Itzhak Kurek, PhD, Co-founder and CEO of Cannformatics. "We are excited to collaborate with Northwell Health on this important study, which advances our mission to unlock the therapeutic potential of cannabinoids and deliver treatments with measurable clinical impact."

"As a physician successfully treating Alzheimer's patients with medical cannabis, I've seen firsthand the reduction in agitation and improvement in quality of life for both patients and caregivers," said Dr. Weinberg. "This study will move the conversation from subjective reports to objective measurements and begin to explain how cannabis is working for people with dementia."

Supported by Cannformatics' biomarker technology, this research represents a step toward evidence-based, personalized medical cannabis treatment for dementia. Findings from the MAC-BPSD study are expected to inform future large-scale clinical trials and guide development of precision cannabinoid therapies.

For more information about the MAC-BPSD study, visit www.cannformatics.com.

About Cannformatics
Cannformatics, Inc. is a San Francisco-based biotechnology company developing AI-powered metabolic biomarkers to measure, predict, and design effective cannabinoid-based treatments for medical conditions linked to endocannabinoid system (ECS) imbalance.

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SOURCE Cannformatics