Brain ‘Pacemakers’ Might Slow Alzheimer’s Deterioration

PHOENIX, AZ – A recent Phoenix phase 2 clinical trial of a brain implant that sends electrical current to parts of the brain linked to Alzheimer’s disease has shown promise in safety and effectiveness in slowing the disease. The surgical implant will be moving on to a phase 3 trial soon, one step away from FDA review.

Eighty-year-old Elizabeth “Ann” Alderson of Phoenix was one of the patients in the recent clinical trial conducted by doctors at Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix. Struggling with once-easy tasks such as running the washing machine and following conversations, the former bookstore employee is also now unable to read books. Ann told The Arizona Republic how she felt when she heard about the Alzheimer’s brain implant clinical trial. “I was so excited to get it. I was so happy. I wanted to jump on it right away,” she said.

Though the deep brain stimulation produced by the surgical implant is not new, its application to Alzheimer’s disease is. The technology has been used successfully for ailments including Parkinson’s Disease, where it targets a different part of the brain than it does for Alzheimer’s patients. In Alzheimer’s, it targets the brain’s “superhighway” called the “fornix,” in hopes of slowing the neurodegeneration of the brain associated with Alzheimer’s.

With the recent successful phase 2 clinical trial proving the procedure's safety and showing "clinically significant" improvements in Alzheimer's patients' function and cognition, the phase 3 trial will soon also test the implant's safety and efficacy in slowing Alzheimer’s cognitive deterioration. The international Phase 3 will last five years and will include up to 210 patients at Germany, Canada and U.S. research sites. “Drug trials (to treat Alzheimer’s) have been slow to produce results, so we are excited to assess whether deep brain stimulation could offer hope for patients and their families,” said Barrow Neurological Institute’s Dr. Francisco Ponce, Director of the Deep Brain Stimulation Program.

Jay Alderson, married to Ann for 59 years, said, “When they turned the device on, within two weeks everyone who is in contact regularly with Ann noticed a difference. I noticed that her cognitive abilities were improved – not dramatically, but noticeably.” Presently, close to 6 million Americans like Ann have been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.

Read the full story at azcentral.com.