US FDA approves first Alzheimer’s drug in nearly 20 years
The US FDA has approved the use of a new drug to treat Alzheimer’s disease, called Aduhelm (aducanumab). The approval of the drug is significant for several reasons: Aduhelm is the first novel therapy approved for Alzheimer’s disease since 2003 and is the first treatment targeting the underlying pathophysiology of Alzheimer’s disease, the presence of amyloid beta plaques in the brain. The clinical trials for Aduhelm were the first to show that a reduction in these plaques – large numbers of which are characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease – can potentially lead to a reduction in the clinical decline of patients...