Alzheimer’s ‘wonder drug’ slows progression of disease by four years - and could even reverse it

Patients in the earliest stage of the disease saw little to no decline over four years

An Alzheimer’s “wonder drug” can delay the progression of the disease by four years, according to a new study.

Researchers found that patients who were given the drug lecanemab in the earliest days of their disease reported an improvement, or no decline at all, in cognitive function.

The trial of 478 patients who stayed on the drug for four years saw their dementia score rise by an average of 1.75 over the whole period - a score significantly lower than the average rise of one or two points over one year.

Almost one million people in the UK suffer from dementia, with Alzheimer’s the most common form of the disease. Urgent demand for new treatments is increasing as the number is expected to rise to 1.4 million by 2040.

The study found some patients even reported improvements in cognitive function (Getty/iStock)

The new data presented at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference in Toronto suggested the drug was most promising for those with low levels of tau, the protein that grows as Alzheimer’s progresses.

In a subgroup of patients with low levels of tau, promising results showed 69 per cent of the group had no decline at all over four years, and 56 per cent saw an improvement in their cognitive scores.

Speaking to The Telegraph, Professor Christopher Van Dyck, the director of the Alzheimer’s Research unit at the Yale school of medicine and the study leader, said: “The thing I really focus on is the time saved. You will get worse over time, but it will take longer to get there.”

Lecanemab was approved for use in the UK last year after trials showed its effectiveness in slowing the progression of the disease. It is a disease-modifying drug, which means that it was developed to tackle the causes of Alzheimer’s disease rather than only relieving the symptoms.

Almost one million people in the UK have dementia (PA)

It works by targeting the protein amyloid, which is thought to build up in the brain and become toxic to brain cells, causing Alzheimer’s symptoms. Other similar drugs, like donanemab, have also been shown to slow the rate at which memory and thinking get worse by more than 20 per cent.

Both drugs are approved by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) but were rejected for use by the NHS because the benefits were deemed to be “too small” to justify the cost.

Dr Sheona Scales, the director of research at Alzheimer’s Research UK, told The Telegraph: “These latest findings offer renewed hope that Alzheimer’s treatments can meaningfully change the course of the disease, not just slow decline in the short term.

“New long-term data show that the benefits of donanemab may continue even after treatment ends, and people on lecanemab for up to four years maintained cognitive gains, with some even improving. Among those treated early with lecanemab and with low levels of tau, over half showed no decline after four years.

“This is the first wave of disease-modifying treatments for Alzheimer’s and, while the progress is encouraging, there are still many pieces of the puzzle we don’t yet have.”