The first drug to slow the progression of early stage Alzheimer’s won’t be available on the NHS because health assessment body NICE says the benefits “are too small to justify the costs”. Lecanemab has been licensed by the UK medicines regulator, the MHRA, which means it can be prescribed privately. In trials , the drug was shown to slow cognitive decline by about a quarter in patients in the early stages of Alzheimer’s over the course of 18 months.
But in draft guidance, NICE said there was a significant cost to the treatment including intensive monitoring for side-effects and fortnightly trips to hospital for patients. Alzheimer’s Research UK said it was "a bittersweet moment". "The approval of lecanemab is a milestone moment but the decision by NICE not to approve it for the NHS is deeply disappointing.
” Dr Samantha Roberts, chief executive of NICE, said the body had rigorously evaluated the available evidence, including the benefit for carers, but could only recommend treatments that "offer good value to the taxpayer.” “Lecanemab provides on average four to six months' slowing in the rate of progression from mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease, but this is just not enough benefit to justify the additional cost to the NHS,” said Helen Knight, director of medicines evaluation at NICE. Around 70,000 adults in England would have been eligible for treatment with lecanemab.
Lecanemab works by clearing a rogue protein called amyloid which builds up in the br.