New promising therapies have been recently discovered for Alzheimer’s disease. People living with this disease or other dementias are usually placing an enormous financial strain on caregivers who are spending thousands of dollars a year on care.
It is estimated that in 2015, 5.3 million people suffered from this disease and by 2050, there will be an increase up to 13.8 million people in the US in the absence of new treatments.
In America, Alzheimer is the most expensive disease, studies showed. Medicare covers some of the expenses for this disease like doctor visits or hospitalization but other services like transportation or diapers for incontinence greatly raise the costs for the caregivers of Alzheimer patients.
This costly disease usually involves long-term care for patients and now scientists believe that they have discovered new promising therapies.
David Johnson, a 59-year-old former truck driver in Sacramento was diagnosed in 2012 with early-onset Alzheimer’s. He was not surprised by this diagnose as this terrible disease has taken his father, six aunts and uncles, and a cousin.
Although resigned to dying he was enrolled in a clinical trial at Sacramento’s Sutter Neuroscience Institute and now considers that the four years into the five-year clinical trial slowed down the disease if not entirely stopped it. The treatment which involves infusions of special antibodies seems to be working so far. The main result is that the disease is not progressing, doctors have mentioned.
Amyloid, the protein that causes Alzheimer’s by attacking the brain cells is at the forefront of the promising therapies. Although not yet FDA-approved, the therapies are in their final phases.
Researchers believe that we are witnessing the era where we are very close to discovering proven disease-modifying therapies. Dr. John Olichney, a neurology professor and director of clinical trials at the University of California believes that the progression of this disease has been slowed down by this new therapy.
Current medication such as Arricept and Rivastigmine are used to boost the patient’s short time memory, but, unfortunately, this treatment does nothing to slow down the disease’s relentless advancement in the brain.
According to the National Institutes of Health, U.S spent an estimated $991 million in 2016 on Alzheimer’s research but it is still less than what is allocated for cancer, heart disease or AIDS.
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