Letting your mind wander can benefit the brain, researchers say.
Tag Archives: Alzheimer’s Disease
Children of Alzheimer’s Patients Fear a Future Diagnosis
Watching a loved one’s decline can be heartbreaking, and can stoke concerns about potential memory loss.
America Saved My Father’s Life. It Tried to Destroy My Mother’s.
David Treuer’s father, an Austrian immigrant, loved this country. His Native mother, born on a reservation, could never forgive it. Where does that leave him?
Processed Meat and Health Risks: What to Know
Here’s what the experts say.
Spinal Fluid From Young Mice Sharpened Memories of Older Rodents
Researchers identified a protein in the fluid that could boost the cognition of aging animals — and might lead to future treatments for people.
Dementia Is a Place Where My Mother Lives. It Is Not Who She Is.
Thinking of it this way creates a boundary between me and the treacherous drop of despair.
Can Your Diet Help Prevent Dementia?
Here’s what the science says about whether your diet can counteract cognitive decline.
Scientists Question Data Behind an Experimental Alzheimer’s Drug
Studies linked to Cassava Sciences, once a stock market favorite, have been retracted or challenged by medical journals.
Medicare Officially Limits Coverage of Aduhelm to Patients in Clinical Trials
Officials cited data showing the new Alzheimer’s drug has serious safety risks and may not help patients.
Inside a Campaign to Get Medicare Coverage for a New Alzheimer’s Drug
The Alzheimer’s Association has pushed relentlessly to get broad access to Aduhelm, despite safety risks and uncertain evidence that it helps patients.
How Your Sense of Direction Is Shaped by Where You Grew Up
Childhood environments shape people’s navigational skills, researchers reported. The findings one day may lead to better tests for early dementia.
How the ‘Whole Life’ Movement Challenges the Politics of Left vs. Right
A conversation about a coalition that combines opposition to abortion with advocacy for health care access and a living wage.
Samuel L. Jackson and Walter Mosley Team Up for a Sci-Fi Fable
In a joint interview, the actor and writer discuss “The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey,” their “fairy tale” about an old man negotiating dementia and family drama with the help of a wonder drug.
‘In Love’ Review: A Powerful Memoir About Marriage and Assisted Suicide
In her new book, Amy Bloom writes about loving her husband and helping him to end his life after a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s.
When Her Husband Said He Wanted to Die, Amy Bloom Listened
In her memoir, “In Love,” the veteran novelist writes about her marriage, her husband’s Alzheimer’s diagnosis and his decision to end his life.
Exercise Can Build Up Your Brain. Air Pollution May Negate Those Benefits.
People who worked out in even moderately polluted air did not show the kinds of brain improvements tied to a lower risk of dementia.
When the Death Certificate Omits the True Cause of Death
Having accurate death records saves lives.
Cataract Surgery May Reduce Your Dementia Risk
Older adults who had cataract removal to restore their vision had a lower risk of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.
When Dementia Strikes at an Early Age
Dementia in a person in their 30s, 40s or 50s poses special challenges, starting with getting a diagnosis.
Medicare Proposes to Cover Aduhelm Only for Patients in Clinical Trials
If the preliminary decision is finalized this spring, it would sharply limit the number of patients who use the expensive drug.
Alzheimer’s Drug Aduhelm Faces Crucial Medicare Decision
Medicare officials are trying to determine whether to cover Aduhelm, which the F.D.A. approved despite unclear evidence that it helps patients.
Biogen Slashes Price of Alzheimer’s Drug Aduhelm, as It Faces Obstacles
A group of Alzheimer’s experts and health advocates called on the F.D.A. to withdraw its approval of the drug, the latest of several setbacks for the treatment.
Can an Athlete’s Blood Enhance Brainpower?
Scientists who injected idle mice with blood from athletic mice found improvements in learning and memory. The findings could have implications for Alzheimer’s research and beyond.
How Exercise May Support the Aging Brain
Simple activities like walking boost immune cells in the brain that may help to keep memory sharp and even ward off Alzheimer’s disease.
Concerns Grow Over Safety of Aduhelm After Death of Patient Who Got the Drug
Newly published safety data shows that 41 percent of patients in key clinical trials of the Alzheimer’s drug experienced brain bleeding or swelling, though many cases were asymptomatic.
Dubious $56,000 Alzheimer’s drug spurs largest Medicare price hike ever
Enlarge / Biogen Inc. headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Biogen Inc. shares soared after its controversial Alzheimer’s disease therapy was approved by US regulators. (credit: Getty | Bloomberg)
Seniors throughout the US will see a hefty increase to their health care premiums next year thanks in large part to Biogen’s Alzheimer’s drug, Aduhelm, which is priced at $56,000 per year and is not proven to be clearly effective at treating Alzheimer’s.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced Friday that the standard monthly premium for Medicare Part B will rise from $148.50 in 2021 to $170.10 in 2022, an increase of $21.60 or roughly 14.5 percent. It is the largest increase ever in terms of dollars and among the largest percentage increases in recent years.
CMS officials said Friday that Aduhelm was responsible for about half of the rise in Part B premiums, according to the Associated Press. Though the CMS is still determining how it will cover Aduhelm under Part B, the agency said the prospect of paying for Aduhelm at all required “additional contingency reserves.”
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Friends Row On After Teammate’s Death, Leaving One Seat Empty
Charlie Hamlin, a former Olympic rower who dominated races well into his 70s, died in May. On Sunday, his longtime teammates plan to row the Head of the Charles Regatta with an empty seat in his memory.
House Committees Demand F.D.A. Records on Alzheimer’s Drug Approval
The agency approved Biogen’s Aduhelm “despite concerns raised by experts,” committee leaders said in a letter.
My Stepdad Has Alzheimer’s. Can My Mom Date Someone Else?
The magazine’s Ethicist columnist on marriage vows and stolen library books.
How Exercise May Help Keep Our Memory Sharp
Irisin, a hormone produced by muscles during exercise, can enter the brain and improve cognition, a mouse study suggests.
Seeking Early Signals of Dementia in Driving and Credit Scores
The pathologies underlying brain decline can begin years before symptoms emerge. Can everyday behavior provide warning?
Expert panel says new $56K Alzheimer’s drug is unproven—and worth $8,400 max
Enlarge / The exterior of the headquarters of biotechnology company Biogen in Cambridge, Massachusetts. (credit: Getty | Boston Globe)
Biogen’s new Alzheimer’s drug Aduhelm continues to face opposition after its contentious approval by the Food and Drug Administration last month—which the FDA now says should be independently investigated. Some insurers say they won’t pay for the drug, some hospitals say they won’t administer it, and yet more experts say it has no proven benefit and is dramatically overpriced at $56,000 for a year’s supply.
On Thursday, a panel of medical experts convened by the nonprofit Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER) voted 15 to 0 to say that there is no evidence that Aduhelm provides clinical benefit to patients. The unanimous vote echoes another one from a panel of expert advisors for the Food and Drug Administration who voted last November against FDA approval. Eleven of ten advisors voted that data collected in two identical Phase III clinical trials failed to show that the drug is effective, with the remaining advisor voting “uncertain.”
The FDA nevertheless approved the drug on June 7, sparking a firestorm of criticism. In an unprecedented move last week, the FDA updated its recommendation for who should receive the drug, significantly narrowing the pool from all Alzheimer’s patients to only those with mild disease. It’s unusual for the FDA to make such a modification so soon after an initial decision and without fresh data to back a change.
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F.D.A. Requests Investigation of Its Own Alzheimer’s Drug Approval
The agency’s acting head said a federal review should look into whether any interactions between agency staff and the drug developer, Biogen, broke F.D.A. rules.
In a Reversal, F.D.A. Calls for Limits on Who Gets Alzheimer’s Drug
The agency faced criticism for approving Aduhelm for all Alzheimer’s patients. The new label recommends that the drug be given only to patients with mild symptoms.
Many Alzheimer’s Experts Say Use of Aduhelm Should Be Sharply Limited
Even those who supported the F.D.A.’s approval of the controversial new drug said authorizing it for anyone with Alzheimer’s disease was much too broad.
The Secrets of ‘Cognitive Super-Agers’
By studying centenarians, researchers hope to develop strategies to ward off Alzheimer’s disease and slow brain aging for all of us.
The F.D.A.’s Approval of Biogen’s Alzheimer’s Drug Is a New Low
The F.D.A.’s approval of the Alzheimer’s drug aducanumab is inexplicable.
Three experts resign as FDA advisors over approval of Alzheimer’s drug
Enlarge / The Food and Drug Administration headquarters in White Oak, Maryland. (credit: Getty | Congressional Quarterly)
Fallout continues from the Food and Drug Administration’s contentious decision this week to approve Biogen’s Alzheimer’s drug Aduhelm (aducanumab) despite a lack of efficacy data.
Three experts who sat on an advisory committee for the FDA have now resigned over the decision.
The advisory committee reviewed the data behind Aduhelm last November and voted overwhelmingly against approval. Of the 11 advisors on the committee, 10 voted “no” on the question of whether Biogen had collected enough evidence to indicate that the drug is effective. The remaining advisor voted “uncertain.”
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Three F.D.A. Advisers Resign Over Agency’s Approval of Alzheimer’s Drug
The drug, Aduhelm, a monthly infusion priced at $56,000 per year, was approved this week despite weak evidence that it helps patients.
Alzheimer’s Drug Is Bonanza for Biogen, Most Likely at Taxpayer Expense
Despite scant evidence that it works, the drug, Aduhelm, is predicted to generate billions of dollars in revenue, much of it from Medicare.
Industrial Policy, Alzheimer’s, Pizza: Your Monday Evening Briefing
Here’s what you need to know at the end of the day.
Alzheimer’s Drug Poses a Dilemma for the F.D.A.
If the agency approves it, aducanumab would be the first new Alzheimer’s treatment since 2003. Patients are desperate for new options, but some scientists say there isn’t enough evidence it works.
People Want an Alzheimer’s Drug. Aducanumab Isn’t the One.
An F.D.A. sign-off for aducanumab would make finding a good treatment harder.
Family Caregivers Feel the Pandemic’s Weight
Early studies reveal the toll that lockdowns, isolation and stress have taken on those who care for older Americans.
Aspirin May Help Protect the Brain From Pollution’s Toll, Study Suggests
Even short-term exposure to polluted air may impair mental ability in the elderly. Aspirin and other NSAIDs showed some protective effects.
Earlier Diabetes Onset Could Raise Dementia Risk
The younger the age at diagnosis for Type 2 diabetes, the higher the risk for Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia years later.
How Spending Mistakes Can Be Early Signs of Alzheimer’s
Impulsive purchases, out-of-control spending: These behaviors can be early signs of Alzheimer’s disease or other cognitive decline.
Doctors Harness the Power of Human Connections
Social medicine programs, which often encourage patients to engage with other people, can help address dementia, isolation and more.
They Have Alzheimer’s. This Clinical Trial May Be a Last Hope.
In the narrow window in which patients are aware of their disease, they have sought help in clinical trials. But enrolling enough participants to make these trials count is not easy.
Sleeping Too Little in Middle-Age May Raise Dementia Risk, Study Finds
The research, tracking thousands of people from age 50 on, suggests those who sleep six hours or less a night are more likely to develop dementia in their late 70s.