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Playing Russian Roulette with Alzheimer's Disease Patients: Do the Cognitive Benefits of Lecanemab Outweigh the Risk of Edema, Stroke and Encephalitis? | LitMetric
The FDA's approval of aducanumab and lecanemab has sparked concerns about their safety, particularly regarding risks of stroke, meningitis, and encephalitis, versus their effectiveness in slowing cognitive decline.
Amyloid-β plays crucial roles in maintaining vascular integrity and providing immune protection, so disrupting its functions with these drugs may have serious health implications.
Patients should be made fully aware of the potential risks, such as hemorrhage and edema, associated with taking these medications that interfere with amyloid-β's protective capabilities.
Article Abstract
The questionable approval of aducanumab and the recent approval of lecanemab (Leqembi; Eisai and Biogen) by the FDA has raised the issue of safety (stroke, meningitis, and encephalitis) over efficacy (slowing of cognitive decline). This communication recounts the important physiological functions of amyloid-β as a barrier protein with unique sealant and anti-pathogenic activities important for maintaining vascular integrity coupled with innate immune functions that prevent encephalitis and meningitis. The approval of a drug that obviates both of these purposive functions increases the risk of hemorrhage, edema and downstream pathogenic outcomes and should be clearly outlined to patients.
