Experimental drug works best for Alzheimer's patients treated as early as possible

FILE PHOTO: Lilly Biotechnology Center is shown in San Diego, California, U.S. March 1, 2023 after Eli Lilly and Co on Wednesday said it will cut list prices by 70% for its most commonly prescribed insulin products, Humalog and Humulin, beginning from the fourth quarter of this year. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo

(Reuters) -An experimental drug from Eli Lilly works best if Alzheimer's patients are treated as early as possible, ideally before they develop symptoms of the brain-wasting disease, researchers said on Monday, signaling the latest promising development for treating the most common form of dementia.

The drug, donanemab, has been shown to slow progression of memory and thinking problems by about a third, but that rate doubles to 60% if the drug is started when patients are only mildly impaired, according to new trial data presented at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference in Amsterdam.