Last month, drug company Genentech reported on the first clinical trials of the drug crenezumab, a drug targeting amyloid proteins that form
fucking livid
Last month, drug company Genentech reported on the first clinical trials of the drug crenezumab, a drug targeting amyloid proteins that form sticky plaques in the brains of Alzheimerās disease patients. The drug had been particularly effective in animal models, and the trial results were eagerly awaited as one of the most promising treatments in years. It did not work. āCrenezumab did not slow or prevent cognitive declineā in people with a predisposition toward Alzheimerās.
Last year, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) narrowly approved the use of Aduhelm, a new drug from Biogen that the company has priced so highly that itās expected to drive up the price of Medicare for everyone in America, even those who never need this drug. Aduhelm was the first drug to be approved that fights the accumulation of those "amyloid plaques" in the brain. What makes the approval of the $56,000-a-dose drug so controversial is that while it does decrease plaques, it doesnāt actually slow Alzheimerās. In fact, clinical trials were suspended in 2019 after the treatment showed āno clinical benefits.ā (Which did not keep Biogen from seeking the drugās approval or pricing it astronomically.)
Over the last two decades, Alzheimerās drugs have been notable mostly for having a 99% failure rate in human trials. Itās not unusual for drugs that are effective in vitro and in animal models to turn out to be less than successful when used in humans, but Alzheimerās has a record that makes the batting average in other areas look like Hall of Fame material.
And now we have a good idea of why. Because it looks like the original paper that established the amyloid plaque model as the foundation of Alzheimerās research over the last 16 years might not just be wrong, but a deliberate fraud.
thanks for the text extraction, i was on my phone <3
Jesus christ
