FEATURE MEDICINE
HOPE OR HYPE? Groundbreaking Alzheimer’s Drug Signals Progress, but Doubts Remain by TIM CRAIG
16 | CFDoctor
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t’s been nearly five months since the Food and Drug Administration approved the first new Alzheimer’s treatment since 2003, but its potential impact has been mired in controversies about the approval process, who should get the treatment, its efficacy in fighting the disease, and its cost.
granted a historic accelerated approval for Alzheimer’s treatment by the FDA on June 7 of this year. The drug company Biogen, of Cambridge, Massachusetts, makes the drug.
However, despite the troubles, there are some who see the new drug as a shift in how to battle a disease that affects 6.2 million Americans age 65 and older, a number expected to grow to more than 12 million by 2040.
The drug is the first of its kind to attack what many believe is an underlying cause of Alzheimer’s disease. It works by eliminating clumps of a toxic protein thought to destroy neurons in the brain that lead to cognitive decline. The proteins, known as betaamyloid plaques and tau, were first discovered in 1984 and are common in people with dementia.
The new medicine, called Aduhelm (generic name aducanumab), was
Aduhelm is a monoclonal antibody that stimulates the immune system to www.centralfloridahealthnews.com
