A number of scientists have expressed satisfaction with the detailed results of a clinical study of a new drug that has been shown to be effective in slowing cognitive decline in patients with neurodegenerative Alzheimer’s disease, but they also point out that it may lead to negative effects.
According to a local Arabic daily, full results of this advanced (Phase 3) clinical study of nearly 1,800 people followed over 18 months confirmed a 27 percent reduction in cognitive decline in patients treated with lecanemab, which was developed by the Japanese drug group Esai and the American Biogen.
And it was previously announced at the end of last September about this ratio, which is considered “statistically significant” according to the two groups.
But the full study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, also reported rates of side effects for licanimab, which are sometimes severe and significantly more frequent than the placebo group.
And it was found that 17.3 percent of patients who received ” lecanemab” suffered cerebral hemorrhage, while the rate was limited to 9 percent among those who took the placebo.
And 12.6 percent of people who received this experimental drug experienced a stroke, compared to just 1.7 percent in the placebo group.
However, the overall death rate was about the same for the two groups of patients in the study (0.7 percent in people treated with lecanemab, and 0.8 percent in those given placebo).
“This is the first drug that offers a real treatment option for people with Alzheimer’s,” said Bart de Strober, director of the Institute’s Dementia Research Institute.
“Although the clinical benefits appear to be somewhat limited, it is expected that they will become more pronounced if the drug is taken for a longer period,” the professor added.
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