LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – A new report offers hope for more than 57 million people suffering from dementia.
The report, released by the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV, looks at dozens of promising drug trials that could one day help find a cure for the disease.
“By looking at what happens overtime, we can see what are the most promising drugs, which drugs and which kind of trials are leading to new therapies and which are not. What are the kinds of new therapies that drugs that might be coming available for their patients,” said Dr. Jeffrey Cummings, a renowned Alzheimer’s clinician-scientist that led the report.
The report reviews the status and trends related to all 182 active clinical trials and assesses 138 drugs currently being studied.
“The fact that we have almost twice as many drugs in the early phases than last year, for example, really gives us confidence that we’re going to have new treatments for Alzheimer’s disease, he said.
In Nevada, nearly 50,000 people are living with some type of dementia. While there is currently no cure, there are drugs that can slow the progression of the disease. A recent study published in JAMA Neurology found benefits to weight loss drugs that treat diabetes and obesity.
“Diabetics who take semaglutide are less likely get Alzheimer’s disease, and that is even compared to insulin, for example,” he added.
The drugs can help improve blood sugar control which affects brain health.
“We can be optimistic that drug development for Alzheimer’s disease is very robust and continues to grow,” said Dr. Cummings.
More than 50,000 people are involved in the clinical trials. Results of some of the trials come be released in late 2026.
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