Clinical Trial Testing New Drug That Could Slow The Progression Of Alzheimer's
By Stephanie Stahl
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- As many as five million Americans age 65 and older suffer with Alzheimer's disease. Now researchers are testing a drug that could be the first new treatment for the debilitating brain disease in years.
Eighty- year-old Judy Hirsh can remember 30 years of family vacations, but at time struggles to remember in the moment.
Her husband Neil says, "We'll go to a movie, she'll be into the movie and she'll watch what's on screen, she'll laugh at a comedy and she'll rub my hand if something thrilling happens. We'll walk out of the theater, did you like the movie, yup, what was it about, I don't remember."
Judy was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 2012. Now she's part of a clinical trial that's testing a new drug that could slow the progression of the disease. The drug, T-817MA is designed to protect against loss of nerve cells in the brain.
Dr. Amy Aloysi, with Mount Sinai Hospital, says, "We are absolutely hoping it can prevent cognitive decline, it will prevent the disease from progressing and prevent the clinical changes that happen."
The study plans to enroll 450 people with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's Disease at about 50 hospitals across the country.
The Hirsch family is hopeful.
Judy says, "Because I have children, I have grandchildren, I have great grandchildren, I'd like to live a while."
In the Philadelphia area, the new Alzheimer's drug will be tested at University of Pennsylvania and Abington hospital. There have been no new treatments for Alzheimer's in the past decade.
About $566 million was spent on Alzheimer's research last year alone.
For information on the drug and the study, click on this link.
