US advisers back Parkinson’s dementia drug

Novartis Pharmaceuticals’ drug Exelon is safe for treating dementia in patients with Parkinson’s disease, a U.S. advisory panel recommended on Wednesday.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration panel of outside experts voted unanimously that the drug, already sold to treat Alzheimer’s disease, could also be used to treat Parkinson’s patients with dementia.

The FDA will make the final decision on whether to approve the additional use, but the agency usually follows its panelists’ advice.

Novartis’ application is the first seeking approval for a drug to treat worsening memory and other mental problems in Parkinson’s patients, according to the FDA.

About 1.5 million Americans have been diagnosed with Parkinson’s, which attacks the nervous system and causes tremors and other symptoms. Mental problems affect about 40 percent of them.

Alzheimer’s, the most common form of dementia, is a degenerative brain disease that affects at least 4.5 million Americans.

Print Version
Tell-a-Friend comments powered by Disqus

RELATED ARTICLES:

New biomarkers may influence drug design and alternative treatments of cancer, study shows   UGA ecologist finds another cause of antibiotic resistance   New drug for neuroblastoma shows promise in phase I study   Baclofen shows promise in patients with alcohol-induced liver disease   Findings point to an ‘off switch’ for drug resistance in cancer   Stopping statins may benefit terminally ill patients   Cholesterol drug users may use pills as a license to overeat   Pfizer lung cancer drug beats chemo for previously untreated patients   Mass. General study identifies path to safer drugs for heart disease, cancer   Gates Foundation awards Notre Dame $23 million for malaria, dengue studies   Cancer drug protects against diabetes   Malaria drug target raises hopes for new treatments