It is good to see that enthusiasm for the controversial possible medication for Alzheimer’s disease has been quelled and the company involved will no longer be seeking to market it Biogen Abandons Its Controversial Alzheimer’s Drug Aduhelm - The New York Times (nytimes.com)
Strangely we see that Panorama will be talking these drugs up. I think they have missed the boat. BBC iPlayer - Panorama - Alzheimer’s: A Turning Point?
It leaves us to use the therapies and approaches to care which exist and are reliable, and to provide a social context which we know can reduce the incidence of dementia. Best use of what is known may not be headline-grabbing but we can do it if we have the will.
Another possible pharmacological approach comes from observations that men who have been using Viagra have a lower incidence of dementia. At least some studies have found this to be the case, but not all. The news has been coming over the past two years, and will provoke additional research. The possibility of chance findings of alternative effects of existing medication is an occasional bonus – and Viagra is already an instance of this – The story of its discovery via a failed trial of its effects in hear disease is now well known: Viagra May Help Prevent and Treat Alzheimer’s Disease (aarp.org)
Each week we post a blog from David Jolley where he shares his personal views on relevant subjects.
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