Alzheimer's Drug Pipeline Grows

Pharmaceutical companies are getting closer to creating drugs that can slow down or halt the development of Alzheimer's disease.  As the baby boomer generation ages, Alzheimer's treatment is going to become even more critical.  According to the Centers for Disease Control, Alzheimer's currently affects over five million Americans.  Globally, the number of victims is expected to grow from thirty million in 2010 to 120 million in 2050.  To meet this expected demand, drug makers are in the process of creating five new medications to treat the disease.

The Pharmaceutical industry currently has five drugs in the pipeline to treat Alzheimer's Disease.  Market analysts are expecting these drugs to become available within the next five years.  Baxter International has created a drug called Gammagard to treat immune-system deficiencies.  The medicine is derived from Plasma, and has shown value to Alzheimer's Patients.  Gammagard can aid the immune system to rid the brain of amyloid.  Amyloid is thought to be a primary cause of Alzheimer's.

Pfizer is working with Johnson & Johnson to perfect a product that uses bapineuzumab to clear amyloid from the body's system.

The companies are cautiously optimistic and warn that it is still too early to tell if the drugs will gain FDA approval, and effectively treat the disease.  The new drugs have only been tested on a small sample size.