FollowIn a bid to make the treatment of Alzheimer’s more advanced and available for the people, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has announced grants of about $45 million for research to find therapies for the disease.
Alzheimer’s, a progressive brain disease, is the sixth leading cause of deaths in the USA, according to the Alzheimer’s Association.
The funding includes $40 million from the Office of the NIH Director, Francis Collins. Additional funding will come from the National Institute on Aging.
“As many as 5 million Americans face the challenge of Alzheimer’s disease, which robs them of their memories, their independence and ultimately, their lives,” Collins said in a statement. “We are determined, even in a time of constrained fiscal resources, to capitalize on exciting scientific opportunities to advance understanding of Alzheimer’s biology and find effective therapies as quickly as possible.”
The funding aims at aiding clinical trials and scientific researchers in the field.
One of the projects that the funding will support is the Alzheimer’s Prevention Initiative APOE4 Trial with the Banner Alzheimer’s Institute. This five-year trial aims at testing an anti-amyloid drug in cognitively healthy adults between age group 60-75. These age group people are at increased risk of developing late-onset Alzheimer’s.
“Once again, we are extremely grateful to the NIH for the opportunity to help accelerate the evaluation of treatments to prevent the clinical onset of Alzheimer’s and find ones that work as soon as possible,” said Eric Reiman, executive director of the Banner Alzheimer’s Institute, in a statement. “This trial will allow us to extend our work to individuals at greatest risk at older ages.”
According to Alzheimer’s Association, the number of Americans with Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia will grow as the U.S. population of those age 65 and older increases
