16 July 2023 , 21:17
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In what is hoped could be a gamechanger in the battle to combat Alzheimer’s, scientists will unveil crucial findings tomorrow. Families affected by the disease hailed initial results of what is a second drug shown to slow dementia progression.
They are the first of a series of drugs going through trials that seem to interrupt the physical processes causing issues such as memory loss. Tomorrow manufacturer Eli Lilly will publish the full results for its drug donanemab which it previously claimed slowed mental decline by 36% by targeting a brain protein known as tau.
It comes a fortnight after the Mirror revealed TV presenter Fiona Phillips has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s at the age of 62. She is now taking part in a clinical trial of a third drug. Writing for the Mirror, Dr Richard Oakley, associate director at the Alzheimer’s Society, said: “After 20 years with no new Alzheimer’s disease drugs in the UK, we now have two potential new drugs in 12 months..
Alzheimer Drug LecanemabThis could be the beginning of the end for Alzheimer’s disease.”
Tau and another protein called amyloid have long been found in Alzheimer’s patients’ brains, and for three decades have been suspected of causing the devastating dementia symptoms. They are thought to interact with each other, but exactly how is a mystery.
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Last year a trial of another drug called lecanemab was shown to slow the progression of symptoms by 27% by blocking the formation of amyloid plaques in the brain. Experts hope that future drugs targeting tau and amyloid could further slow the relentless loss of memory and thinking ability suffered by Alzheimer’s patients.
In May, Eli Lilly announced positive topline phase three results from its trial of donanemab for the treatment of early symptomatic Alzheimer’s disease. From tomorrow experts from around the globe – including in the NHS – will begin studying the detailed findings to see whether the benefits outweigh the risk of side effects.
Brain swelling and bleeding are risk factors with such drugs. The trial resultswill be unveiled today at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference in Amsterdam. It could take as little as 12 to 18 months for UK regulators to potentially licence donanemab as safe. It would then be for the NHS to decide on cost effectiveness criteria as to which patients can have the drug.
Fiona Phillips has revealed she has Alzheimer's (Daily Mirror)Hilary Evansco-chair of the Government’s national Dementia Mission, fears the new drugs would initially only be available to those who can pay to go private. She said huge systemic changes are needed for the drugs to be widely available even in five to 10 years.
After decades of trial failures, the two drugs are the first to successfully delay the relentless progression of Alzheimer’s. Fiona is taking part in a trial of a third drug which is in the earlier stages of development at University College Hospital in London
If approved in the UK, the drugs could be used to help 720,000 people, estimates suggest. It includes 286,000 with mild Alzheimer’s, and 435,000with mild cognitive impairment, a precursor to full-blown Alzheimer’s. In 2019 it was estimated there were around 900,000 people with dementia in the UK. This is projected to rise to 1.6 million by 2040. More than 200,000 people develop the condition every year. Alzheimer’s is the most common form ofdementia.
Early symptoms can include problems with memory and thinking, and mood changes. Vascular dementia is the second most common type. Early symptoms may include problems concentrating. Fiona has been accepted on to trials of a drug called miridesap which targets amyloid deposits. To qualify, she had to take tests to prove her Alzheimer’s was at a mild stage.
She was asked questions such as “what month is it?”. Fiona said: “The tests were stressful. I was suddenly thinking, ‘what if I can’t answer these questions?’.”
Catriona Shepherd was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s in 2014 at the age of 58'We could have had more time together'
Catriona Shepherd was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s in 2014, aged 58. Husband David, 65, called news of the breakthrough drug exciting, saying: “There are now two drugs that appear to interrupt the physical processes behind Alzheimer’s and that’s extremely encouraging. If they had been available when my wife was in the early stage of the disease, we could have had more meaningful time together.”
After Catriona’s diagnosis she was prescribed the only available drugs, which addressed symptoms but not the underlying cause. David explained: “They had little effect on my wife and she steadily slipped further into the ravages of dementia. I became her full-time carer after her diagnosis, until she moved into full-time care late in 2020.
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"We probably had three or four years at most after the diagnosis where we could still try and live a reasonably full life together. My wife volunteered to take part in research after her diagnosis, and although her involvement was not in the area of drug therapy, I am sure she would be very pleased to know of this development. Sadly, she no longer has that level of cognitive ability.
“These new drugs give me hope that future generations may no longer face the awful prospect of suffering from this disease, which robs you day by day of the one you love. The’ve come too late for my wife but I hope they can help others.”