PROVIDENCE – Two Rhode Island hospitals are recruiting participants for a clinical trial to test the effect of lecanemab in treating preclinical Alzheimer’s disease.
Butler Hospital’s Memory and Aging Program and Rhode Island Hospital’s Alzheimer’s Disease and Memory Disorders Center are recruiting individuals who are at high risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease for the AHEAD Study. Researchers are studying whether lecanemab, an investigational antibody, can help slow or stop the earliest symptoms associated with preclinical Alzheimer’s.
“The Alzheimer’s Disease and Memory Disorders Center at Rhode Island Hospital is committed to finding not only effective treatments for those living with the disease but also effective ways to prevent the disease in those who show biological indicators of the disease yet are not experiencing any symptoms,” said Jonathan Drake, director and principal site investigator for the AHEAD Study at Rhode Island Hospital. “It is our hope that studies such as the AHEAD Study will demonstrate that intervening early enough could help slow disease progression, ideally making Alzheimer’s a manageable rather than fatal disease.”
“We are hopeful that by reducing the level of amyloid protein in the brain, we can either reduce the progression of Alzheimer’s disease, or even stave off cognitive impairment entirely,” said Meghan C. Riddle, interim director and principal site investigator for the AHEAD Study at Butler Hospital. “The Memory and Aging Program at Butler Hospital is delighted to be part of this groundbreaking era of potential treatments for Alzheimer’s disease, and we are excited about the potential impact that the AHEAD Study may have on the future.”
The hospitals are seeking men and women between 55-80 years of age who can provide written consent and are willing to take a blood test to ensure they meet screening criteria. The AHEAD Study is comprised of two different clinical trials testing the same investigational treatment. Participants will be enrolled in one of two AHEAD trials based on the level of amyloid in their brain. Study participants will receive treatment, either monthly or bimonthly, via IV infusion by a trained research nurse at either clinic.
Rhode Island Hospital and Butler Hospital were also among the research sites that participated in Clarity AD, the clinical trial led by pharmaceutical companies Eisai Co. Ltd. and Biogen, which found that a treatment with lecanemab could reduce cognitive decline among people with early signs of the disease by 27% at 18 months. This new study will try to determine whether the drug is also effective on individuals not yet diagnosed with the disease but with high risk of developing symptoms.
The AHEAD Study has approximately 100 study locations worldwide, nearly 75 of which are in the United States and Canada.
Claudia Chiappa is a PBN staff writer. You may contact her at Chiappa@PBN.com.