Press Release

Recent developments in the research of Alzheimer’s Disease have signaled that major medical breakthroughs could be coming, none too soon for this disease that is currently incurable and which poses a special burden to patients in developing countries who lack access to cutting-edge treatments, expert witness testified at a Congressional hearing on “A Global Update on Alzheimer’s Disease,” held today by Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.), Chairman of the House global health subcommittee.

PHOTO SLIDE SHOW AT LEFT FROM THE CONGESSIONAL HEARING

“Alzheimer’s is a cruel disease, robbing its victims of their memories and their very identities, and robbing their family and friends of the person they know and love,” Smith, who is also the co-founder and co-chair of the bipartisan Congressional Task Force on Alzheimer’s Disease, stated. Click here for Smith’s opening statement.

The hearing was carried live by CSPAN and can be watched in its entirety by clicking here.

“It is excruciatingly painful for someone to lose themselves gradually – to find themselves increasingly alone in a world they know,” Smith said.

Tuesday’s hearing comes on the heels of the World Health Organization’s pronouncement in July, setting official benchmarks for countries to develop strategies to prevent and treat Alzheimer’s. This major development came after the National Alzheimer’s Project Act, which Smith co-authored and which became law in 2011, set up national goals for the U.S. to have successful treatment and prevention of Alzheimer’s by 2025.

“As we open today’s hearing, there are an estimated 47 million people in the world living with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia—more than the entire population of Spain—according to a report by Alzheimer’s Disease International,” Smith said. “The total estimated global cost of addressing this condition today is $818 billion, but by as early as next year, it is estimated that this cost will rise to at least one trillion dollars.” 

The subcommittee has now held four hearings on Alzheimer’s, including Tuesday’s hearing. At the hearing, leading officials at the National Institutes of Health – experts on elderly care and international research – testified about both the challenges of Alzheimer’s and positive developments in research on this disease.

“In most people with Alzheimer’s, symptoms first appear after age 60, although a much smaller subset of patients see onset at earlier ages,” said Marie A. Bernard, MD, Deputy Director of the National Institute on Aging at the National Institutes of Health. “Although treatment can help manage symptoms in some people, there is currently no cure for this devastating disease.”

“As recently as 2004, there were no established biomarkers for Alzheimer’s,” Roger Glass, MD, PhD, Director of the Fogarty International Center and Associate Director for International Research at the National Institutes of Health, stated. Click here to read Dr. Bernard and Dr. Glass’ full testimony.

“Today, not only can we image both amyloid plaques and tau tangles (the neuropathological hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease) in the living brain, but we have also identified many other potentially promising biomarkers, from blood proteins to early changes in an individual’s sense of smell,” Glass said.

Another 2016 study, conducted by scientists at the Institute for Regenerative Medicine at the University of Zurich, showed that patients who received the drug aducanumab showed positive signs in Alzheimer’s treatment, Smith noted. The patients “experienced an almost complete clearance of the amyloid plaques that prevent brain cells communicating, leading to irreversible memory loss and cognitive decline,” Smith said.

Other challenges to the prevention and treatment of Alzheimer’s persist however, witnesses said, including special challenges in developing countries and a lack of formal diagnoses for patients with Alzheimer’s.

“This problem is growing more quickly in developing countries than in industrialized countries,” Mary Mittelman, Dr.PH, research professor at the Departments of Psychiatry and Rehabilitative Medicine and Director at NYU Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias Family Support Program at NYU School of Medicine and NYU Langone Health, said. Click here to read Dr. Mittelman’s testimony.

“While new pharmaceutical interventions may provide more benefits than those that are currently available, they are likely to be expensive, and may be unaffordable by many families dealing with dementia,” Dr. Mittelman said.

“United States figures suggest that only about 50% get a formal diagnosis, and more troubling is the fact that as many as 30% or persons with a diagnosis in their medical record have not been informed of their diagnosis,” Michael Splaine, owner and principal of Splaine Consulting, stated. Click here for Splaine’s testimony.

“The clinical presentation and care burden of patients is quite similar across geographies, countries and health systems. Memory problems, difficulty in communication and progressively greater need for assistance in activities of daily living are found in all patients regardless of country,” Richard Mohs, Chief Scientific Officer at the Global Alzheimer’s Platform (GAP) Foundation, stated. Click here for Mohs’ testimony.

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