Lecanemab's Side Effects in Real-World Use Found to be Infrequent
Revised Article:
Hope is on the horizon for Alzheimer's disease patients as a new medication, lecanemab, gains U.S. FDA approval in 2023. While lecanemab offers benefits like slowing the progression of symptoms and potentially reducing brain clumps called amyloid plaques, it's crucial to understand its potential side effects.
Lecanemab, marketed as Leqembi, has its fair share of risks, just like every other medication. Some common side effects include headaches, dizziness, muscle aches, and blurred vision. However, a more significant concern is amyloid-related imaging abnormalities (ARIA), including brain swelling or bleeding in severe cases.
Data from the Clarity AD phase 3 clinical trial, published in 2022, revealed that only a tiny fraction of participants—0.8% for ARIA-E and 0.7% for ARIA-H—experienced these side effects. A new study confirms these findings, suggesting that such adverse events are relatively rare and manageable in real-world use of lecanemab among people with the earliest stages of Alzheimer's disease.
The recent study, conducted at Washington University Memory Diagnostic Center, enrolled 234 early symptomatic Alzheimer's patients with an average age of around 74. Barbara Joy Snider, a co-senior author of this study and a professor of neurology at WashU Medicine, explains that "Lecanemab is an antibody designed to target specific types of amyloid proteins. These proteins can interfere with brain activity and form clumps when misfolded, which is a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease."
In this study, researchers found that 1.8% of participants in the earliest stages of Alzheimer's disease experienced ARIA symptoms, while that figure rose to 27% for those with mild Alzheimer's disease. Of the 11 participants who experienced ARIA symptoms, the effects generally disappeared within a few months, with no fatalities recorded.
Dr. Snider expresses optimism about the safety of lecanemab in real-world use and notes that they will continue monitoring their patients for long-term side effects and effects on memory loss. She also emphasizes the importance of early diagnosis for Alzheimer's patients, as the benefits of lecanemab appear to be more pronounced for people with very mild symptoms.
Research is ongoing to identify patients at increased risk for ARIA and to help clinicians provide more informed recommendations based on individual patient risk profiles. This could help patients make more informed decisions regarding treatment options, such as choosing between lecanemab and other anti-amyloid therapy drugs like donanemab.
- The recently approved medication, lecanemab, is specifically designed to target certain types of amyloid proteins that interfere with brain activity and form clumps in Alzheimer's disease, making it an antibody for neurological disorders.
- While lecanemab offers potential benefits in slowing the progression of symptoms and reducing amyloid plaques in Alzheimer's disease patients, it's crucial to be aware of its side effects, including amyloid-related imaging abnormalities (ARIA) such as brain swelling or bleeding.
- In a study conducted at the Washington University Memory Diagnostic Center, researchers found that 1.8% of early-stage Alzheimer's patients experienced ARIA symptoms while using lecanemab, with the figure rising to 27% for those with mild Alzheimer's disease.
- It's essential for medical-conditions like Alzheimer's disease to receive adequate attention in the health-and-wellness field, particularly as science continues to work on improving treatments such as lecanemab and donanemab for neurological disorders such as Alzheimer's disease and other dementias.
- Early diagnosis is crucial for Alzheimer's patients, as the benefits of medications like lecanemab and donanemab seem to be more pronounced for people with very mild symptoms, allowing seniors and their families to make informed decisions about treatment options.
