KANSAS CITY, Kan. (KCTV) – The University of Kansas Medical Center is set to receive $5 million from the state to build a new network aimed at improving dementia diagnostic capabilities.

Officials at the University of Kansas Health System said the funding — which supporters intend to be annual if the state’s appropriation process allows — will help build the Kansas Brain Health Assessment Network.

The network will be located at KU Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center and will begin this July. It will bring specialist-level dementia diagnostic capabilities into primary care practices across Kansas.

“Kansas has a unique responsibility here. Our geography creates barriers that other states don’t face the same way. We built the tools to address this at KU — and the legislature recognized that these proven care models should be implemented to benefit all Kansans across our state,” said Jeffrey Burns, M.D., co-director of KU Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center.

Burns said the funding comes as, for the first time, clinicians have access to blood-based biomarker tests to accurately detect Alzheimer’s disease without an invasive procedure.

The KU Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center is one of 35 centers designated by the National Institutes of Health and one of eight institutions in the world participating in the Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative.

KU Medical Center said 55,000 Kansans are living with dementia and Wednesday’s announcement of funding will help specifically rural Kansans, who face months-long waits for specialist appointments.

“This initial investment reflects a thoughtful investment in both innovation and accessibility,” said Kansas State Sen. Jeff Klemp (R-Lansing), who supported the funding. “This investment leverages the strength of the University of Kansas Medical Center and extends that expertise across Kansas into our rural hospital network. This opportunity makes meaningful progress in how we approach brain health and ensures these advancements are available to all Kansans, not just those near major medical centers.”

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Tyran Stokes, the consensus No. 1 men’s basketball recruit for next season, announced his commitment to Kansas on Tuesday, ending a long, drawn-out recruitment that hinged on everything from who his coach would be to what sneaker he would be wearing.

Stokes made the announcement during “Inside the NBA” on ESPN.

The 6-foot-7 forward from Ranier Beach High School in Seattle has long been considered the top prospect in his class. With an uncanny ability to drive to the basket, Stokes scored 63 points in a game against West Seattle this past season, and he was one of the stars of the McDonald’s All-American Game, putting up 12 points and nine boards in leading the West team to victory.

“Honestly it’s been a long process, ever since I got my first offer, I think going into high school,” he said. “Ever since then it’s been having like, college coaches talking to me, having good relationships with different coaches. It takes a lot.”

Stokes had trimmed his list to Oregon, Kansas and Kentucky, but the Ducks recently dropped out of the running, leaving the race for the likely one-and-done prospect a showdown between two of college basketball’s bluebloods.