Is Aducanumab a Miracle Drug?

A new drug called Aducanumab has been circulating the medical news for a while along with many questions. To answer these questions, it is imperative to understand Alzheimer’s disease.  This research was done by reading other articles and observing scans to truly comprehend the premise of the problems. It was found that Alzheimer’s is caused by the clumping of amyloid-beta proteins and tau proteins which kill the neuron. The drug, that is in question, is an immunotherapeutic drug that is prescribed for moderately severe cases of Alzheimer’s. The trials were done on a variety of people and different stages of Alzheimer’s. They tested different doses and compared the values to a placebo. This was all monitored by MRI scans to any decrease in amyloid plaque and to monitor the possible systems. Through the observation of different trials and testing, it is still not clear if the drug truly works and is worth taking. In some studies, Aducaumab has been seen to work positively and had a substantial difference in the amount of plaque reduced compared to the placebo values. However, some of the later studies say otherwise because there is not much plaque reduction and the symptom called ARIA-E. This drug is different in its approach from other drugs in the sense that it actually targets the amyloid plagues. According to a neuro physician, many doctors are willing to give this medication a try and closely monitor a patient if the patient falls under the right category for treatment. Overall, questions about this drug are still yet to be answered. 

By: Sanjana Ananthula