In a Slew of Failures and Setbacks to Alzheimer’s Treatment, One Study has Hope for Success

One of the biggest setbacks facing scientists on the search for an effective Alzheimer's treatment is cruelly ironic: there aren't enough people with the disease. In order to supply the 100+ approved Alzheimer's studies in the US with proper data, 25,000 screened participants are needed. However, misdiagnosis and the various incidental requirements of each individual study yield high rates of screening failure, and scientists would require an initial pool of 37.5 million Alzheimer's patients. There are only 5.5 million in America today.

One giant pharmaceutical, Eli Lilly, is up to the task. Their new trial is applying the cutting edge of modern medicine to the disease, with two powerful, experimental drugs that attack a protein called beta amyloid, the buildup of which is the first known sign of Alzheimer's. 

Click below to read more a full, expert article on the difficulties facing scientists as they move forward and how there is hope for the future.