Alzheimer's disease

“Leaky” Brain

“Leaky” Brain

Alzheimer's drugs, at least the experimental ones, are a dime a dozen. Maybe less.

The Food and Drug Administration on July 6 granted full approval to the first therapy for Alzheimer’s that slows the cognitive decline associated with the disease.

Here are the eleven from Nature, plus two bonus picks from me.

I spent 15 years as the FDA’s “biotechnology czar” at a time when many of the biopharmaceutical companies were small startups needing guidance as they negotiated the regulatory maze.

Statin use is ubiquitous, and a careful read of the literature will demonstrate some small percentage of each clinical trial having increased or decreased risk of dementia and Alzheimer's Disease (AD).

Biogen announced that its current candidate for an Alzheimer’s drug was ineffective, resulting in an 18 billion dollar loss in valuation – that number should provide a sense of both the need and market for an effective treatment.

Alzheimer’s Disease is a great fear for many individuals, and for the health care system as it may well eclipse heart disease in costs as the “Boomers” age. And it is a global problem.

Along with the projected increase in the number of elderly people over the next few decades, we can also expect an increase in the ailments that bedevil them — and few are as concerning as Alzheimer's Disease and other forms of dementia.