Could a weight-loss drug bring relief to early Alzheimer’s sufferers?

A new study has found that an obesity and diabetes drug could decelerate the progression of Alzheimer’s if the disease is caught in its early stages, offering a glimmer of hope for an increasing number of sufferers.

Administered as an injection, the drug liraglutide was tested in a two-phase trial conducted by experts from Imperial College London, which studied 204 patients with mild to moderate forms of the disease.

Those who received the drug appeared to decline 18% more slowly in cognitive function than those who received the placebo, though further trials are needed before it could be approved to treat the disease, according to The Guardian.

The trial found that liraglutide slowed shrinking in those parts of the brain used for memory, decision-making, learning and language by nearly 50% against the placebo, based on MRI scans.

Alzheimer’s disease often causes the brain to shrivel as the illness progresses because crucial nerve cells break down and stop working properly, CNBC reports.

There are almost seven million Americans with Alzheimer’s, a figure predicted to rise to almost 13 million by 2050. Globally, the current figure is set to almost triple to 153 million by 2050 as the older population grows, The Guardian reports.

The costs to healthcare systems around the world will be astronomical. In America alone, healthcare costs are estimated to reach $360 billion this year, a figure calculated to rise to $1 trillion by 2050, according to the US Alzheimer’s Association.

Many famous names have suffered from Alzheimer’s including author Iris Murdoch, and actors Robin Williams, Bruce Willis and Rita Hayworth. Beyond the age of 65, the risks of developing Alzheimer’s double every five years.

According to the American Psychological Association, people considered to be highly intelligent may develop the disease later in life but decline more sharply once they have it.

Researchers at Imperial College London presented the results of the liraglutide trials on July 30 at the Alzheimer’s Association’s International Conference in Philadelphia, where much of the world’s research in this field is discussed.

“This research provides hope that more options for changing the course of the disease are on the horizon,” said the chief science officer of the Alzheimer’s Association, Dr Maria Carrillo at the conference, reports The Guardian.

“We are in an era of unprecedented promise, with new treatments in various stages of development that slow or may possibly prevent cognitive decline due to Alzheimer’s disease,” Carillo added.

Dr. Paul Edison, professor of neuroscience at the Imperial College London and the trial’s lead author, told CNBC, “I think demonstrating cognitive improvement is the key, because that is what the patients are interested in.” He added that a phase 3 trial is now necessary to push the potential treatment forward.

Edison explained that liraglutide probably achieves that by reducing inflammation in the brain, improving how the nerve cells in the brain communicate and reducing insulin resistance as well as tackling the presence of toxic proteins called amyloid plaque and tau particles.

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