New drug reduces pace of Alzheimer’s Disease decline by a third

The first evidence that drug therapy can slow the underlying cause of dementia has been revealed. The study of an antibody called solanezumab shows that it reduces the decline in brain function of patients in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease by about 30%. Patients were given an infusion of the antibody once a month for one-and-a-half years. By then there was a marked difference in the progression of the disease compared to those who did not take the drug.

After a decade of no new treatments and several failed trials, today’s news is really positive

Dr Clare Walton, research manager for the Alzheimer’s Society

The manufacturer of the drug, Ely Lilly, had abandoned a trial in 2012 after disappointing results. However, when it re-analysed the data to look at patients at the earliest stages of Alzheimer’s, there were encouraging signs that patients benefited. Dr Eric Siemers, medical director of Eli Lilly, said: “The point of this is to understand that it does make a difference if you start treatment early not later." Solanezumab targets deformed proteins called amyloid, that accumulate in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease. The abnormal proteins form sticky clumps between nerve cells, damaging and eventually killing the brain cells. The treatment does not cure the diseases, but slow it.

This tells us we don’t want to wait to start those treatments to slow down the progression of the disease.

Dr Eric Siemers, medical director of Eli Lilly

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