Can this 3p diabetes pill fight dementia?
A PILL costing just 3p used to treat Type 2 diabetes could stave off dementia, a study suggests. The cheap drug, metformin, is taken by up to three million people in the UK to lower their blood sugar levels.
Researchers found it significantly slowed brain decline and cut dementia risk in diabetics.
And they now hope it could have the same “life- changing” effect in other people.
The six- year study included over 1,000 people aged 70- 90, including 123 who had diabetes. A total of 67 received metformin.
The Australian research found that diabetics who took metformin slowed the decline in their memory and thinking skills.
Their dementia risk dropped by 81 per cent, to around the same level as non- diabetics.
Impacts
Study leader Prof Katherine Samaras, of the Garvan Institute of Medical Research in Sydney, said: “We’ve revealed the promising potential for a safe and widely used medication which could be life- changing for patients at risk of dementia and their families.
“For those with Type 2 diabetes metformin may add something extra to standard glucose lowering in diabetes care – a benefit for cognitive health.
“As they age, people living with Type 2 diabetes have a staggering 60 per cent risk of developing dementia, a devastating condition that impacts thinking, behaviour and independence.
“This has immense personal, economic and societal impacts.”
Previous studies have suggested metformin may help prevent a wide range of conditions including cancer, heart disease, polycystic ovary syndrome and obesity.
Prof Samaras, an endocrinologist at St Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney, is now investigating whether it could benefit nondiabetics who are at risk of dementia. She added: “Type 2 diabetes is thought to increase dementia risk by promoting degenerative pathways in the brain and nerves.
“But these pathways also occur in others at risk of dementia and it is possible insulin resistance may be the mediator.
“To establish a definitive effect we are planning a large trial of metformin in individuals at risk of dementia and assess their cognitive function over three years. This may translate to us being able to repurpose this cheap medication with a robust safety profile to assist in preventing against cognitive decline in older people.”
However, Dr Sara Imarisio, head of research at Alzheimer’s Research UK, warned the drug would not be a silver bullet.
She said: “Repurposing an existing drug used for another health condition would be a cheaper and inexpensive way to bring about a new dementia treatment.
“In this well- conducted study, results suggest that metformin helps slow down memory changes in those with diabetes and the decline is comparable to people without the condition.
“However, there is no conclusive evidence that suggests those without diabetes taking metformin receive the same benefit.”
Fiona Carragher, director of research at Alzheimer’s Society, said: “If we can repurpose drugs we can save the millions of pounds and decades it takes to develop a new drug from scratch.
“So far, metformin has had mixed results in terms of whether it might reduce dementia risk.
“There are still questions as to how and why the drug appears to reduce the risk.”
The findings were published in the Journal Diabetes Care.
THE ongoing battle against dementia is one of the world’s most important long- term health issues. So the news that a cheap Type 2 diabetes drug could have a major impact on treating this most awful of diseases is hugely welcome.
It is again an example that sometimes we do not need to invent something new but reapply something we already know. Let us hope this breakthrough can ease the suffering of the victims and their families.