The Canadian multi-ethnic research on aging (CAMERA) study: Design, participant characteristics, and preliminary findings.

INTRODUCTION

South Asian and Chinese individuals are the largest and fastest-growing ethnoracial groups in Canada, yet they remain underrepresented in dementia research. To address this gap, we established the CAnadian Multi-Ethnic Research on Aging (CAMERA) study.

METHODS

CAMERA is a longitudinal observational study conducted in Toronto, Canada, enrolling 300 adults aged 55-85 who self-identify as South Asian, Chinese, or non-Hispanic White (NHW). Participants complete in-person visits at baseline, Year 3, and Year 5, which include clinical and cognitive assessments, brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and blood-based biomarkers. Annual remote questionnaires track health and lifestyle factors.

RESULTS

Among the first 200 participants, vascular and metabolic profiles differed across groups. In addition, South Asian and Chinese participants reported greater cognitive concerns than NHW participants and had lower Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) scores. The latter was driven primarily by language-heavy and culturally dependent items. Eye-tracking measures did not differ across groups.

DISCUSSION: CAMERA provides a deep phenotyping framework to investigate dementia risk and resilience factors in Asian Canadians.