New jab for Alzheimer’s due in a year

A BREAKTHROUGH drug for Alzheimer’s could be offered to the first UK patients within a year.

Lecanemab, given in a fortnightly jab, was found in trials to slow the disease’s progress by more than a quarter.

It is the only treatment proven to destroy harmful proteins associated with the disease and deliver a significant clinical benefit.

Experts say they are excited by the development. Professor John Hardy, a world-leading dementia researcher at University College London, hopes the drug can be approved quickly for UK use.

‘I would guess that we would see the first people [getting the drug] towards the end of next year,’ he said. The treatment is expected to be beneficial to those in the early stages of the disease.

Scans from trials showed that those given lecanemab had less build-up of the toxic protein amyloid on the brain. Patients’ cognitive abilities declined 27 per cent less over 18 months when measured against those given a placebo.

Almost one million Britons have dementia – with up to threequarters of cases thought to be caused by Alzheimer’s disease.

But doctors worry that only one in 20 patients will benefit from the new treatment because of a lack of resources in dementia services and fears that many sufferers are being diagnosed too late.

Professor Hardy suggested over60s could be routinely screened for Alzheimer’s. There are two ways to spot amyloid on the brain – a scan or a biomarker test done through lumbar puncture. Both are expensive, with long waits for the tests.

Doctors instead often have to make a diagnosis after a range of memory, concentration and communication tests – but these are only about 70 per cent accurate.

Private patients and those living near major dementia services can access these tests but the vast majority cannot and experts fear that, without significant new investment, people will be diagnosed too late to benefit from treatments.

Dr Susan Kohlhaas, director of research at Alzheimer’s Research UK, said: ‘The lecanemab results brings a renewed sense of urgency to really improve the way we diagnose diseases like Alzheimer’s.’

The full trial results for lecanemab will be presented next week at the Clinical Trials on Alzheimer’s Disease conference in San Francisco.

‘Renewed sense of urgency’