
The ARIA are usually asymptomatic, meaning they show up on scans but can’t be felt, though some of the donanemab trial subjects experienced difficulties concentrating. There was also a higher rate of amyloid-related imaging abnormalities (ARIA, also called “cerebral edema”), which causes swelling in the brain. The results of testing donanemab on people were good enough that the Food and Drug Administration called it a “breakthrough,” and the process of development and review has been sped up.īrains with dementia become smaller over time as cells weaken and die, but researchers said there was an association in trial subjects between donanemab and greater brain-volume loss than the subjects who took placebo. – Thinking ability declined more slowly for individuals who took donanemab, compared to placeboįor much more on clinical trials, see below. – PET brain scans showed reduced plaques between cells in the brains of some participants Some of the evidence that donanemab can help with Alzheimer’s disease include results from clinical trials: It can’t cure Alzheimer’s (there is no cure for most types of dementia), but memory, thinking ability, and movement might stay stronger longer after taking the drug. On this page, we’ll take a closer look at donanemab, including how the drug works and when it might hit the market.Įvidence suggests donanemab can slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease when taken by individuals in the early stages of the disease. The number of cases is expected to more than double in coming years, making pharmaceuticals like donanemab crucial to slowing the impact of this deadly disease. Alzheimer’s disease is our 6th leading cause of death and affects more than 6 million Americans. Donanemab, made by the pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly and Co., is working its way through clinical trials and has shown benefits including slowing the progression of symptoms like memory loss.ĭonanemab is an antibody that targets amyloid-beta, which forms in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. "Positive Approach" for Emotional DistressĪ new drug for the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease is closer to becoming available to the public.How to Converse with People with Dementia.
