What You Need To Know The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted final approval to the anti-Alzheimer’s drug lecanamab, marked as Leqembi by drugmakers Eisai a.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted final approval to the anti-Alzheimer’s drug lecanamab, marked as Leqembi by drugmakers Eisai and Biogen BIIB . Here is what you need to know:
What does it do? In a formal phase 3 trial, Leqembi was shown to slow the progression of memory loss and cognitive impairment in patients with early-stage Alzheimer’s disease by about 27 percent over an 18-month period.
How does it work? Leqembi is one of a class of drugs known as monoclonal antibodies. In a trial, it reduced the amount of a material called amyloid beta that builds up in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease. While this plaque is associated with Alzheimer’s, scientists strongly disagree about whether it causes the disease, either alone or in combination of other brain changes.
What it doesn’t do? It does not reverse brain damage caused by Alzheimer’s or stop the disease from getting worse. It does slow the progression of Alzheimer’s. Until we see further trial results, it is not possible to know if the benefits continue and at what pace, after 18 months. There is no evidence that Leqembi benefits people with later stage Alzheimer’s. Nor is there any evidence that it benefits patients with any of the many other forms of dementia, such as vascular dementia, frontal-temporal dementia, or Lewy-Body dementia.
How do you know if you are eligible to take Leqembi? You first need a diagnosis of early-stage memory loss caused by Alzheimer’s disease.
