Dementia News Summary of 2020
COVID-19 overshadowed much of the news around dementia related discoveries and advances in 2020. However, some important research and development did occur including important advancements in the early detection, control, and even in the treatment of dementia. Below is a brief summary of the pages (and pages and pages) of dementia news for 2020. Research News Medications Aducanumab While there are no medications to prevent or cure dementia yet, several new drugs are showing some promise results, including one called Aducanumab. It is now under FDA review (after some initial doubt re: its efficacy). The makers of Aducanumab provided additional evidence in 2020 that the drug can delay the onset of dementia by reducing aggregated amyloid beta – a protein that normally plays an essential role in memory loss later in life. If approved, Aducanumab will be the first therapy shown to slow dementia-related cognitive decline. Besides ongoing doubts about its efficacy, the therapy is also very pricey (about $50,000 per year per patient, not including imaging and other medical costs to monitor its effects) and its impact to Medicare funding. Early detection initiatives The PET scan is the gold-standard for detecting tau tangles, which are a pre-symptomatic predictor for dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. The tau proteins – are typically found in brain cells– is associated with multiple brain diseases. Researchers are developing faster, less expensive, and more widely-available alternative methods to detecting tau using blood or cerebrospinal fluid sampling and analysis. The newer methods can result in earlier disease detection which is important for patient care and treatment decision. Via blood and plasma-based biomarkers Several new blood-based biomarkers are in various stages of testing. These blood-based biomarkers are more accurate than previous technologies for early [...]