Roche’s Alzheimer’s drug shows potential in early trials

An experimental Alzheimer’s therapy from Roche has successfully removed a protein that is a hallmark of the disease from the brains of patients, the company reported Wednesday, adding to evidence that the drug shows promise.

The data is from an early-stage study, and so far Roche has not yet assessed whether there was any corresponding change in cognitive function or disease progression. But U.S. regulators in recent years have approved similar drugs that can reduce levels of a protein called amyloid in patients’ brains and have modestly slowed the progression of Alzheimer’s disease in studies.

What’s more, early findings of Roche’s treatment, an antibody called trontinemab, suggest it may be safer than some of the other amyloid-clearing treatments, although larger studies would need to confirm this. In particular, there have been relatively few cases of a problem called ARIA, a type of swelling or bleeding in the brain, which has been seen with the other antibodies and which has led regulators in some parts of the world. to have negative opinions of existing drugs.

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