Following a consultation with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Biogen (Nasdaq : BIIB) and Eisai, Co., Ltd (Tokyo, Japan) have announced plans to pursue regulatory approval for aducanumab, which would be the first therapy to tackle clinical decline in early Alzheimer’s disease. If successful, this presents an opportunity for Cambridge Cognition (LON: COG) whose CANTABTM assessments are specifically sensitive to the early cognitive decline during Alzheimer’s disease.
Despite initial concerns about the efficacy of aducanumab, new analysis of an expanded dataset has revealed positive results at higher doses of the drug and Biogen have indicated that they will file for approval in the U.S. early next year. If approved, this will be the first drug to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease; a major therapeutic breakthrough, as there have been no new treatments approved since 2003.
This promising step forward for Alzheimer’s disease raises the urgent challenge of finding and assessing patients who are most likely to benefit from such drugs. Cambridge Cognition’s CANTAB MobileTM can support clinicians in making this decision.
CANTAB MobileTM delivers an automated memory assessment and depression scale to distinguish older patients who have concerns about their memory from those at increased risk of dementia. Available in over 20 languages, this CE-marked, FDA-cleared and TGA-approved medical device is poised to help clinicians all over the world identify patients who are most likely to benefit from disease-modifying treatments.
Matthew Stork, Chief Executive Officer of Cambridge Cognition, said:
“We were delighted to hear the news of Biogen’s re-invigorated Alzheimer’s programme, as it holds promise for the millions of people worldwide who are affected by the disease. We are therefore preparing for the approval of disease modifying treatments so that patients and families can benefit from new therapies as soon as possible. CANTAB MobileTM is a medical device that can help clinicians in identifying the right patients for these potential new treatments.”
