FOX VALLEY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — A first-of-its-kind Alzheimer’s drug has been fully approved by the FDA. The drug is intended to slow cognitive decline in people in the early stages of the disease.
After years of little progress in the battle against Alzheimer’s, those affected by the disease have a newfound hope in the form of Lecanemab, also known as Leqembi.
“If it does make a marginal impact, that could be great because it would give the loved one and the family longer to have a better quality of life,” Fox Valley Memory Project Executive Director Mike Rohrkaste said.
With FDA approval, qualified patients will receive IVs every two weeks.
“It goes into the person’s system and clears out a protein that builds up in the brain in Alzheimer’s called amyloid,” UW Professor of Medicine Cynthia Carlsson said. “What we think that does is there’s less deposits in the brain. That amyloid kind of sits in there and causes irritation to the nerves and damage to the nerves, so that leads to thinking and memory problems.”
Dr. Carlsson is also the Director of Wisconsin’s Alzheimer’s Institute. As she explains, it’s a way to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s. But it’s not a final solution.
“This is the first we hope of future therapies,” Carlsson said. “It’s only going to be available for a subgroup of people — people who have mild cognitive impairment for mild dementia.”
Still, it’s a significant sign of progress for caretakers everywhere.
“It’s hopeful,” Rohrkaste said. “There’s not a lot that healthcare can do, and now maybe, hopefully, they can do more with this drug. ”
The Fox Valley Memory Project is an organization dedicated to working directly with people who have memory loss, as well as their caretakers.
“My mom passed away from dementia a long time ago, and I did not understand at the time what it was,” Rohrkaste said.
As someone who’s experienced a loss, it’s a cause Rohrkaste is passionate about.
“They may not be able to easily walk from one room to another or even know how to get from one room to the other,” Rohrkaste said. “So, it does become more challenging as the disease progresses. Caregivers often experience multiple losses throughout the journey.”
There are pills currently available. But experts say none of them get to the root of the problem like Lecanemab. Researchers like Carlsson hope this is just the start of finding a cure.
“We have a study that we’re doing now that is looking at this exact same medicine but in people who don’t have memory problem, who do have changes of amyloid in their brain,” Carlsson said. “We’re hoping we can catch it early, clear out that amyloid and then use it to prevent Alzheimer’s.”
Doctors say there can be some side effects due to neurologic changes. They can range from mild to severe.
Medical professionals recommend getting checked and treated for memory problems before they are detected. Some can stem from medication side effects, sleep apnea or depression. The World Health Organization estimates more than 55 million people in the world have dementia. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia and may contribute to 60–70% of cases.
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