Alzheimer's trials are shifting to a multi-target approach inspired by cancer research, even after failures with Novo Nordisk's semaglutide. Only two drugs, Eli Lilly's Kisunla and Eisai and Biogen's Leqembi, are widely approved to slow progression. This evolution treats the brain-wasting disease as a complex system, seeking new ways to halt it amid its global impact.
Alzheimer's disease causes about 60% of the over 55 million global dementia cases, marked by amyloid and tau protein buildup in the brain.
Just two drugs are widely approved to slow its advance: Eli Lilly's Kisunla and Leqembi from Eisai and Biogen. Both reduce progression by roughly 30% through removal of toxic amyloid plaques.
Experts highlight a pivotal shift in trials, exemplified by the unsuccessful testing of Novo Nordisk's blockbuster GLP-1 drug semaglutide for Alzheimer's. These efforts underscore viewing the brain-wasting condition as a network of complex pathways, akin to recent transformations in cancer therapeutics.
Adopting cancer's multi-target playbook, researchers are advancing to pinpoint additional targets and methods for arresting the disease more comprehensively.