"Alzheimer's Disease: Drug Sparks Hope, Desperation"
The last drug approved by the FDA for Alzheimer's disease was memantine in 2003. And for patients and their families, the string of negative trials has taken its toll. Beyond safety and efficacy, there's the cost. Because bexarotene is not an approved Alzheimer's treatment, insurance companies won't cover it. "The drug will cost between $1,200 and $2,500 per day out of pocket," said Dr. Sam Gandy, director of the Mount Sinai Center for Cognitive Health in New York. Gandy said families who said they have "nothing to lose" could risk money and "unexpected side effects of a dangerous treatment, and loss of the loved one rather than the gradual deterioration from the disease."
- Dr. Sam Gandy, Professor, Neurology, Psychiatry, Associate Director of the Mount Sinai Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Mount Sinai School of Medicine
Learn more: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/AlzheimersCommunity/alzheimers-disease-skin-cancer-drug-sparks-hope-desperation/story?id=15573971#.TzpsdMhx1I0