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The Food and Drug Administration approved a new Alzheimer’s drug from Eli Lilly that has been shown in clinical trials to modestly slow a decline in memory and thinking abilities in people with the disease, the drugmaker said Tuesday. The drug donanemab, which will be sold under the brand name Kisunla, is a monoclonal antibody infusion given every four weeks. The FDA cleared the drug for use in adults with mild cognitive impairment or early Alzheimer’s disease, the drugmaker said.

Kisunla works by targeting amyloid in the brain, considered a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. The approval is significant because it adds another treatment option for the devastating disease, said Dr. Ronald Petersen, a neurologist at the Mayo Clinic.



Last summer, the FDA granted full . “It will give clinicians and patients a choice,” Petersen said. An estimated 6.

7 million Americans ages 65 and older were living with Alzheimer’s in 2023, according to . The number is projected to increase to 13.8 million by 2060.

The agency’s approval was based on that showed the drug slowed the progression of Alzheimer’s by about 35% after 18 months, compared to a placebo. Decline was measured using the clinical dementia rating scale, which focuses on how well patients performed in six categories: memory, orientation, judgment and problem solving, community affairs, home and hobbies, and personal care. The results were comparable to those seen with .

Once a patient’s amyloid has reached very low .

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