Current:Home > NewsHow well does a new Alzheimer's drug work for those most at risk?-LoTradeCoin
How well does a new Alzheimer's drug work for those most at risk?
View Date:2024-12-23 18:33:08
Listen to Short Wave on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts.
A new drug for Alzheimer's disease, called lecanemab, got a lot of attention earlier this year for getting fast-tracked approval based on a clinical trial that included nearly 1,800 people.
While some saw it as undeniable progress for a disease with no other proven treatment, others urged caution because of severe side effects and the finding of only a "modest" effect. Dr. Jonathan Jackson, Assistant Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School, has another concern: the racial and ethnic makeup of the trial.
The clinical trial for lecanemab was the most diverse for an Alzheimer's treatment to date, but it still was not enough to definitively say if the drug is effective for Black people.
"[In] the world's most diverse Alzheimer's trial, a giant trial of 1,800 people that lasted for a much longer time than most trials did, we're still not sure that all of the groups that are at highest risk of Alzheimer's disease actually see any kind of benefit," Jackson, director of the Community Access, Recruitment, and Engagement Research Center, says.
The makers of lecanemab say the trial was able to enroll more Black and Hispanic patients by removing some of the requirements that had been in place for previous trials. They cite tapping into community outreach groups and making it "easy for the patients to enroll into the study, and we made it easy for the patients to actually continue to participate in the study," says Shobha Dhadda, Vice President of Biostatistics and clinical development operations for Neurology at the pharmaceutical company Esai.
The trial enrollment comes close to reaching the racial breakdown of people 65 and older according to the census, but Jackson says that's the wrong goal. Black and Hispanic people, women, and those with a genetic predisposition are all at disproportionately high risk for developing Alzheimer's. Jackson says companies should be overrepresenting these groups in their trials.
"If we continue to study privileged populations ... we're leaving huge questions unanswered about how Alzheimer's works, how it progresses, and what are the significant risk factors," he says. "So when you're designing a study, you should really worry less about the census and more about trying to represent those who are disproportionately affected."
On today's episode, Jonathan and Short Wave co-host Emily Kwong delve into how drug developers can overlook those hardest hit by the disease they're trying to treat.
Have suggestions for what we should cover in future episodes? Email us at [email protected].
This episode was produced by Liz Metzger and edited by Gabriel Spitzer. Anil Oza contributed additional reporting and checked the facts. Patrick Murray was the audio engineer.
veryGood! (596)
Related
- The charming Russian scene-stealers of 'Anora' are also real-life best friends
- California school district pays $27M to settle suit over death of teen assaulted by fellow students
- How close is Earth to becoming unlivable? Humans push planet to brink, study warns.
- Top Chef's Stephanie Izard Shares What's in Her Kitchen, Including a $11 Find She Uses Every Day
- Republican Dan Newhouse wins reelection to US House in Washington
- What do you do if you find a lost dog or cat? Ring's new Pet Tag lets you contact owners.
- North Carolina court upholds law giving adults 2-year window to file child sex-abuse lawsuits
- California regulators propose higher rates for PG&E customers to reduce wildfire risk
- 'Cowboy Carter' collaborators to be first country artists to perform at Rolling Loud
- A federal judge again declares that DACA is illegal. Issue likely to be decided by US Supreme Court
Ranking
- Federal judge orders Oakland airport to stop using ‘San Francisco’ in name amid lawsuit
- Rangers' Max Scherzer out for the season with injury as Texas battles for AL playoff spot
- Law Roach, the image architect, rethinks his own image with a New York Fashion Week show
- Adam Sandler announces I Missed You Tour dates: Where to see the standup show
- Gisele Bündchen Makes First Major Appearance Since Pregnancy
- Teen driver accused of intentionally hitting three cyclists, killing one, in Southern California
- 3 people injured in India when a small jet veers off the runway while landing in heavy rain
- Hospitality in Moroccan communities hit by the quake amid the horror
Recommendation
-
Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul stirs debate: Is this a legitimate fight?
-
GOP legislative leaders’ co-chair flap has brought the Ohio Redistricting Commission to a standstill
-
Wisconsin Senate to vote on override of Evers’ 400-year veto and his gutting of tax increase
-
Federal judge again declares DACA immigration program unlawful, but allows it to continue
-
Biden EPA to charge first-ever ‘methane fee’ for drilling waste by oil and gas companies
-
Appeals court to quickly consider Trump’s presidential immunity claim in sex abuse case
-
Venice faces possible UNESCO downgrade as it struggles to manage mass tourism
-
Whole families drowned in a Libyan city’s flood. The only warning was the sound of the dams bursting