Prof Sharon Abrahams

Professor Sharon Abrahams’ research focuses on the changes in thinking and behaviour, which can occur in some people with MND. She also investigates the changes in the brain which underlie these symptoms either through the analysis of brain images or tissue. In many with MND these changes may be mild, but some people can experience a type of dementia called frontotemporal dementia. Professor Abrahams and colleagues have developed a test which can detect these changes, called the Edinburgh Cognitive and Behavioural ALS Screen (ECAS). This brief assessment may be undertaken by a health care professional either within the clinic or in the patient’s home and is now part of routine care.

Professor Abrahams studied Psychology at Reading University and then the Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London where she also trained to become a clinical psychologist. She worked as a Welcome Trust Research Fellow and then as a lecturer at King’s prior to joining the University of Edinburgh in 2004. She was awarded a Personal Chair in Neuropsychology at the University of Edinburgh in June 2014. 

Professor Abrahams is Associate Editor for the journal Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Frontotemporal Degeneration, and also works closely with the MND charities to educate both NHS clinicians and the public on changes to cognition in MND.