New drug promises significant advances in repelling Alzheimer's disease
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The battle against Alzheimer's disease, a condition that has long cast a shadow over the lives of millions, maybe on the cusp of a breakthrough.
For those in their golden years, the fear of losing cherished memories and the essence of who they are is a daunting prospect.
However, new drugs on the horizon are offering a glimmer of hope, promising to slow down the progression of this most feared disease.
Retired furniture maker David, who began showing symptoms of Alzheimer's around eight years ago, is one of the many individuals who have been given a renewed sense of hope.
‘I was working away, and all of a sudden, I suddenly couldn't remember what I was supposed to do next,’ he recounted.
‘I thought, “This is really weird”, and I just forgot.’
The confusion and forgetfulness that followed marked the onset of a journey that approximately 600,000 people in the United Kingdom and many more worldwide are all too familiar with.
David's participation in a clinical trial for a new Alzheimer's drug called Lecanemab has not only provided him with potential relief but also a sense of purpose.
His wife Cheryl expressed the emotional uplift the trial has given them, contrasting it with the helplessness that used to accompany an Alzheimer's diagnosis.
‘It's given us hope to be doing something as opposed to nothing, which was the traditional way with Alzheimer's. Your GP would say, “I'm afraid there's nothing we can do,”’ she said.
‘We felt that we were doing something.’
Clinicians remain uncertain about the required duration of these treatments and the longevity of their benefits.
‘They're not saying this is a complete cure. Just giving individuals more time before they can't remember, you know, who their children are,’ Cheryl continued.
‘It's given me longer with David as my husband.’
Dr Cath Mummery from the Dementia Research Centre at University College London explained the significance of this outcome, equating it to an additional five months of higher-level functioning for patients over the trial period.
‘Any medications that can slow this process and also which herald the beginning of a new era of other new medications designed to be possibly able to stop this disease in its tracks is very big news.’ she said.
The clinical trials, which included another promising drug called Donanemab, have been conducted in the UK and Australia.
Over an 18-month period, these drugs have been shown to slow cognitive decline by about one-quarter to one-third.
‘If you want to try and make that meaningful in terms of what a patient understands in clinic, then I would tell them that that gives you, over that 18-month period, about five months at a higher level of function,’ she continued.
Alzheimer's is characterised by the abnormal build-up of proteins in the brain, particularly amyloid, which forms plaques around neurons and disrupts communication.
Lecanemab and Donanemab are engineered antibodies that target amyloid, helping immune cells clear it away.
This approach could delay the progression of symptoms, which often take years to manifest.
However, these treatments are not without risks. A side effect known as amyloid-related imaging abnormalities (ARIA) can cause swelling or bleeding in the brain.
‘A ballpark 35 per cent of people taking this class of medication will develop ARIA, but only about 3.5 per cent of people will actually experience any symptoms,’ she said.
‘A small group of people, about 0.6 per cent, can actually develop more serious side effects.’
Despite these challenges, the drugs have completed clinical trials and are now under consideration for licensing in the UK.
The hope is that they could be even more effective when administered in the early stages of Alzheimer's, particularly for those with a genetic predisposition to the disease.
‘What we hope is, if you give it when you've got less amyloid in the brain and you haven't got damage because you haven't got symptoms, then it might have a greater effect.’ Mummery claimed.
For individuals like Pete, who carried the faulty Alzheimer's gene that devastated his family, these trials represent a race against time.
‘If I'm lucky, my onset won't start until my mid-40s,’ he said.
The 33-year-old is participating in a clinical trial set to continue for another three years.
He is among 168 individuals globally with the defective Alzheimer's gene involved in the study.
‘If these drugs I'm on within this trial don't work, I will get Alzheimer's,’ he stated.
The question of who will be eligible for treatment remains. In the United States, Lecanemab is already licensed at a cost of around $40,000 per year.
If approved in the UK, health authorities will determine its cost-effectiveness for the National Health Service (NHS).
Early diagnosis will be crucial, as the drugs will likely only be available to patients in the initial stages of Alzheimer's.
Currently, only 2 per cent of Alzheimer's patients in the UK receive the gold standard tests for diagnosis, such as PET scans or spinal lumbar punctures.
Blood tests that detect high levels of amyloid may become available within five years, but until then, many patients may go undiagnosed.
In related news, a phase 3 clinical trial has demonstrated that the drug can significantly slow cognitive and functional decline in individuals with early-stage Alzheimer's disease.
The trial assessed the drug's safety and efficacy in 1,182 participants with symptoms. You can read further details on this breakthrough here.
Have you or a loved one been affected by Alzheimer's? What are your hopes for these new treatments? Share your thoughts and opinions in the comment below.
For those in their golden years, the fear of losing cherished memories and the essence of who they are is a daunting prospect.
However, new drugs on the horizon are offering a glimmer of hope, promising to slow down the progression of this most feared disease.
Retired furniture maker David, who began showing symptoms of Alzheimer's around eight years ago, is one of the many individuals who have been given a renewed sense of hope.
‘I was working away, and all of a sudden, I suddenly couldn't remember what I was supposed to do next,’ he recounted.
‘I thought, “This is really weird”, and I just forgot.’
New drug offered hope by slowing cognitive decline in Alzheimer's patients. Credit: Shutterstock
The confusion and forgetfulness that followed marked the onset of a journey that approximately 600,000 people in the United Kingdom and many more worldwide are all too familiar with.
David's participation in a clinical trial for a new Alzheimer's drug called Lecanemab has not only provided him with potential relief but also a sense of purpose.
His wife Cheryl expressed the emotional uplift the trial has given them, contrasting it with the helplessness that used to accompany an Alzheimer's diagnosis.
‘It's given us hope to be doing something as opposed to nothing, which was the traditional way with Alzheimer's. Your GP would say, “I'm afraid there's nothing we can do,”’ she said.
‘We felt that we were doing something.’
Clinicians remain uncertain about the required duration of these treatments and the longevity of their benefits.
‘They're not saying this is a complete cure. Just giving individuals more time before they can't remember, you know, who their children are,’ Cheryl continued.
‘It's given me longer with David as my husband.’
Dr Cath Mummery from the Dementia Research Centre at University College London explained the significance of this outcome, equating it to an additional five months of higher-level functioning for patients over the trial period.
‘Any medications that can slow this process and also which herald the beginning of a new era of other new medications designed to be possibly able to stop this disease in its tracks is very big news.’ she said.
The clinical trials, which included another promising drug called Donanemab, have been conducted in the UK and Australia.
Over an 18-month period, these drugs have been shown to slow cognitive decline by about one-quarter to one-third.
‘If you want to try and make that meaningful in terms of what a patient understands in clinic, then I would tell them that that gives you, over that 18-month period, about five months at a higher level of function,’ she continued.
Alzheimer's is characterised by the abnormal build-up of proteins in the brain, particularly amyloid, which forms plaques around neurons and disrupts communication.
Lecanemab and Donanemab are engineered antibodies that target amyloid, helping immune cells clear it away.
This approach could delay the progression of symptoms, which often take years to manifest.
However, these treatments are not without risks. A side effect known as amyloid-related imaging abnormalities (ARIA) can cause swelling or bleeding in the brain.
‘A ballpark 35 per cent of people taking this class of medication will develop ARIA, but only about 3.5 per cent of people will actually experience any symptoms,’ she said.
‘A small group of people, about 0.6 per cent, can actually develop more serious side effects.’
Despite these challenges, the drugs have completed clinical trials and are now under consideration for licensing in the UK.
The hope is that they could be even more effective when administered in the early stages of Alzheimer's, particularly for those with a genetic predisposition to the disease.
‘What we hope is, if you give it when you've got less amyloid in the brain and you haven't got damage because you haven't got symptoms, then it might have a greater effect.’ Mummery claimed.
UK clinical trials showed a 25-33 per cent reduction in cognitive decline over an 18-month period. Credit: Shutterstock
For individuals like Pete, who carried the faulty Alzheimer's gene that devastated his family, these trials represent a race against time.
‘If I'm lucky, my onset won't start until my mid-40s,’ he said.
The 33-year-old is participating in a clinical trial set to continue for another three years.
He is among 168 individuals globally with the defective Alzheimer's gene involved in the study.
‘If these drugs I'm on within this trial don't work, I will get Alzheimer's,’ he stated.
The question of who will be eligible for treatment remains. In the United States, Lecanemab is already licensed at a cost of around $40,000 per year.
If approved in the UK, health authorities will determine its cost-effectiveness for the National Health Service (NHS).
Early diagnosis will be crucial, as the drugs will likely only be available to patients in the initial stages of Alzheimer's.
Currently, only 2 per cent of Alzheimer's patients in the UK receive the gold standard tests for diagnosis, such as PET scans or spinal lumbar punctures.
Blood tests that detect high levels of amyloid may become available within five years, but until then, many patients may go undiagnosed.
In related news, a phase 3 clinical trial has demonstrated that the drug can significantly slow cognitive and functional decline in individuals with early-stage Alzheimer's disease.
The trial assessed the drug's safety and efficacy in 1,182 participants with symptoms. You can read further details on this breakthrough here.
Have you or a loved one been affected by Alzheimer's? What are your hopes for these new treatments? Share your thoughts and opinions in the comment below.
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