Charity urges Streeting to ‘act’ in wake of Alzheimer’s drug announcements

A charity has written to Health Secretary Wes Streeting, urging him to step in after it was announced that a drug shown to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease may not be rolled out on the NHS in England.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) deemed lecanemab – developed by Eisai and sold under the brand name Leqembi – efficient at slowing Alzheimer’s disease down.

However, draft guidance issued by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) said the benefits are “just too small to justify the significant cost to the NHS”.

Reacting to the announcements, the chief executive of Alzheimer’s Research UK, Hilary Evans-Newton, said the charity has urged Mr Streeting to “act”.

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She said: “Further negotiations between Nice, Eisai and the NHS may offer a way forward. But the heartbreaking reality is that those who could benefit from drugs like lecanemab don’t have time to wait.

“We’ve written to the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, urging him to act, and to find a solution so that people with dementia in the UK don’t continue to miss out on innovative treatments.

“As well as considering how to make drugs like lecanemab available, there also needs to be a real focus on improving the way dementia is diagnosed within the NHS.

“The shocking reality is that one in three people in England with dementia never get a formal diagnosis, leaving them unable to access the care and support they need.”

Ms Evans-Newton said it is “deeply disappointing” that people in the early stages of the disease “will be denied access to lecanemab through the NHS, and it will only be available to those who can pay privately”.

She also hailed lecanemab as a “sea change”.

“Lecanemab represents the beginning of a sea change in how diseases like Alzheimer’s will be treated in future,” she said.

“There are now more than 160 trials under way, testing over 125 experimental treatments for Alzheimer’s across the globe, including 30 in late-stage trials. Despite today’s frustrating news, it really is a matter of when, not if, new treatments become available.

“What people living with Alzheimer’s disease – and other forms of dementia – desperately need are new medicines that improve their lives, and Alzheimer’s Research UK will work tirelessly on behalf of people affected by dementia to ensure they get them.”

Fiona Carragher, chief policy and research officer at Alzheimer’s Society, said the charity “respects” the regulatory decisions, but added that Nice’s recommendation “reflects the urgent challenges” in how dementia is diagnosed and treated.

“Today’s MHRA approval of the first safe and effective Alzheimer’s disease treatment, shown to slow progression, is a defining moment for people with early-stage Alzheimer’s disease in the UK and a significant step towards a more hopeful future,” she said.

“While we welcome the MHRA approval, it is disappointing that Nice has not recommended approving lecanemab for use on the NHS at this stage. The news that lecanemab will be restricted to certain groups of patients will also lead to uncertainty for many people with Alzheimer’s disease and their loved ones.

“We respect the decisions regulators have made; however, we know these announcements will bring a mix of emotions for those who have been waiting a long time since the promising trial results were first announced.

“The Nice recommendation reflects the urgent challenges which must be addressed regarding how we diagnose and treat people with dementia.

“A third of people affected by dementia have not received a diagnosis, and, for those who have been diagnosed, it’s often not early or accurate enough for a person to be eligible for new treatments.

“A dementia diagnosis not only opens up the potential for treatment, it is also the single most effective route to the care, support and information we know is so important for everyone living with dementia and their loved ones.”