Researchers specialising in Alzheimer’s disease have presented a new analysis of clinical trials of new treatments for the condition.
George Vradenburg of the US advocacy organisation UsAgainstAlzheimer’s, and colleagues, presented their analysis yesterday (18 July) at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference in London, UK.
The analysis covers projections for drugs currently in Phase II and Phase III clinical trials, outlining their timeframes including estimated launch date of the new drug.
The authors explain that 27 Alzheimer’s drugs in Phase III clinical trials and eight drugs in Phase II clinical trials may launch in the next five years.
They add that there has been an 18% rise in Phase II drugs and a 7% rise in Phase III drugs in development in the last year.
Mr Vradenburg says: "The Alzheimer’s disease pipeline, marred by decades of failures and underinvestment, is due for big victories. Thanks to growing investment from industry leaders, we remain cautiously optimistic that the current crop of late-stage Alzheimer’s innovations will bring much-needed solutions to families in the near future."
A range of mechanisms of action are being tested, the authors say, such as targeting amyloid protein build-up in the brain, and neurotransmitter activity.
Co-author Dr David Morgan of the University of South Florida, USA, said: "There is no silver bullet when it comes to treating Alzheimer’s. The more we learn about the underlying Alzheimer’s pathology, the closer we get to a cure for a disease that is an enormous burden on patients, caregivers and global health systems.
"Recently, the full force of academic brain researchers and the pharmaceutical industry have focused on achieving measurable changes in the brain function of patients afflicted by Alzheimer’s disease."
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