For example, treatment with gantenerumab did not slow the disease in affected patients. Roche also explained that the degree of removal of beta-amyloid, typical Alzheimer’s deposits in the brain, was lower than expected.
However, Roche will continue to fight Alzheimer’s, “one of the most complex neurological diseases and a major public health challenge.” Roche will continue to develop and provide tests for the early and accurate diagnosis of Alzheimer’s, and there are a number of investigational drugs available for different targets, types, and stages of the disease.
The news is likely to be received with disappointment at first. Because although analysts have repeatedly emphasized that they think the chance of success of this study is very low, there has been some hope in the market recently. This was because of competitors Biogen/Eisai, who had recently achieved positive results and thus made a breakthrough in a study with a similar approach.
Few figures show how staggering Alzheimer’s research has been so far. According to Credit Suisse analyst Lorenzo Biasio, more than $42.5 billion in private spending since 1995 has gone to research and development projects for Alzheimer’s involving about 185,000 patients. Under normal circumstances, this would be enough to develop about two dozen drugs, the analyst said.
The pharmaceutical industry is under a lot of pressure when it comes to Alzheimer’s. According to calculations made by the International Alzheimer’s Disease Organization, 139 million people worldwide may suffer from Alzheimer’s disease by 2050. Currently, approximately 55 million people are affected by this devastating disease today. In addition, the global cost of the disease could double to nearly two trillion US dollars by 2030.
(SDA)