Health Canada recently approved the first disease-modifying therapy for Alzheimer’s disease, which is a long-awaited milestone that carries significant implications for private drug plans, employers and working Canadians.
“Leqembi’s approval is a turning point after two decades of no new treatment options,” said Dr. Sarah Mitchell, cognitive neurologist at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and director of the Brain Medicine Program at the University of Toronto, in a session sponsored by Eisai Canada during Benefits Canada’s Drug Innovations Webinar: A spotlight on brain health.
“It’s an exciting time in Alzheimer’s disease to finally have this type of breakthrough.”
Read: Treating early Alzheimer’s disease for optimal results and cost mitigation
Unlike existing Alzheimer’s medications that only manage symptoms for later-stage patients who have become functionally dependent, this new treatment targets the underlying cause of the disease by removing amyloid plaques, abnormal proteins that damage brain cells long before symptoms appear.
Mitchell described dementia as an irreversible neurodegenerative progressive disease of the brain that causes problems with memory and thinking that interfere with daily life. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form, accounting for about 60 to 80 per cent of all cases of dementia. In Canada, more than half a million people are estimated to be living with dementia, though the true number is likely higher due to underreporting.
Leqembi is indicated for individuals with mild cognitive impairment or early Alzheimer’s disease, stages that, according to Mitchell, “are when people are still out in the community, they’re still in the workplace, they’re functioning, but they may be having mild inefficiencies in their memory and thinking that are causing them to not perform as they’re used to.”
She emphasized that early intervention offers the greatest opportunity to slow disease progression and help individuals maintain daily function. In addition, she noted clinical studies demonstrated Leqembi slows cognitive and functional decline, improves quality of life and reduces caregiver burden. Early treatment, she said, requires a confirmed diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease verified through brain imaging.
Read: How employers can support Alzheimer’s and dementia patients, caregivers
Many working-age caregivers face absenteeism or reduced productivity as they care for loved ones, said Mitchell, noting that slowing disease progression may help maintain workforce participation and reduce the burden on caregivers.
“This disease has a ripple effect that extends far beyond the individual. People gradually become reliant on those around them to handle the tasks they once managed independently because of these cognitive changes.”