Alzheimer's treatment breakthrough
Channel: Civil Disturbia
Date: 2018-03-03

Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia, and currently there's no cure. But researchers in Korea have found a combination of existing drugs that reduces a substance believed to cause Alzheimer's. 

Park Se-young has more. The number of Koreans with Alzheimer's is expected to surpass 800-thousand by 2020. There is so far no known cure or established treatment for the disease. 

Research has focused on attacking the buildup of amyloid proteins which form in sufferers' brains and are believed to play a key role in causing Alzheimer's disease by blocking nerve cell communication. 

Now, a team of Japanese researchers has found a combination of three existing drugs that reduces the protein deposits by 30 to 40 percent. 

The drug cocktail is the first in the world to reduce levels of the amyloid beta proteins, but combination therapy has long been regarded as a promising option for cancer treatment. 

For instance, Herceptin, used in targeted therapy for breast cancer, was found to be more effective when prescribed with other anti-cancer drugs. "Cancer treatment started out with just single drug therapy, which comes with the problem of tolerance and reduced strength. 

Combination therapy can overcome such drawbacks." Because newly developed drugs tend to come with the dangers of unknown side effects, researchers are increasingly looking for new ways to use existing drugs that have a track record for safety.

SOURCE: https://youtu.be/VD5ToTZVwic