WASHINGTON, DC—Following is a statement by George Vradenburg, chairman of UsAgainstAlzheimer's, on the announcement that Eli Lilly and Company and AstraZeneca's experimental BACE inhibitor drug for Alzheimer's is advancing to Phase 3 clinical trials.
"Today's announcement is positive news for those of us in the field and is especially bright news for Alzheimer's families worldwide. Lilly and AstraZeneca's progress reinforces our growing optimism that the industry is on the verge of unprecedented innovation in treating Alzheimer's. The Alzheimer's disease drug pipeline is offering renewed promise in contrast to the lack of notable success experienced in the last decade. Just last week, an analysis conducted by ResearchersAgainstAlzheimer's (RA2), an UsAgainstAlzheimer's (UsA2) network, found that 17 drugs were on pace to launch in the next five years. Today's announcement by Eli Lilly and Company and AstraZeneca increases that number to 18, providing a much-needed boost of enthusiasm as researchers continue their unrelenting search for an effective treatment."
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UsAgainstAlzheimer's (UsA2) is an innovative non-profit organization demanding – and delivering – a solution to Alzheimer's. Driven by the suffering of millions of families, UsAgainstAlzheimer's presses for greater urgency from government, industry and the scientific community in the quest for an Alzheimer's cure – accomplishing this through effective leadership, collaborative advocacy, and strategic investments.
Founded in 2010 by Trish and George Vradenburg, UsAgainstAlzheimer's has worked across sectors to: (1) secure the national goal of preventing and effectively treating Alzheimer's by 2025 and help secure nearly $500 million in additional public funding for Alzheimer's research over the past few years; (2) drive global efforts that resulted in the leaders of the world's most powerful nations, the G7 group, to embrace a similar 2025 goal and to call for greater levels of research investment and collaboration; and (3) forge industry commitments to improve efficiencies for an expedited drug discovery and approval process.
ResearchersAgainstAlzheimer's (RA2) is a network of more than 400 Alzheimer's researchers established by UsAgainstAlzheimer's to advocate for federal research funding and policy reform in order to stop Alzheimer's disease. RA2 believes that an effective treatment for Alzheimer's disease is within reach if government, industry and citizens are willing to commit the resources and institute the policy changes that are necessary.
CONTACT:
Tim Tassa
202.263.2580
[email protected]