Thanks for taking the time to explain. That article and the quotes were actually from a couple of weeks ago, before the full results of the study were released just yesterday (initially the drug company just released a summary statement), so he wouldn’t have been able to say ‘the study/data shows’ but I do take your point more broadly.

There are so many respected, expert scientists in this field (representing numerous organisations and institutions all over the world, not affiliated with the drug company) stating this is an exciting step forward and I believe them. More fool me perhaps. They aren’t saying it’s a magic pill, they’re saying it’s the start, while also rightly highlighting the numerous real issues now to be tackled through further investigation, additional studies, etc. That’s how science works, as you say. What happens next will be the proof in the pudding.

I’m going off what the head of research at the Alzheimer’s Society has said. Are you saying he’s wrong? Not trying to be combative - genuinely wondering.

““This is not a cure by any stretch of the imagination, but if it does slow cognitive decline, it means that for the first time we are modifying the disease,” says Dr Richard Oakley, head of research at the Alzheimer’s Society.”” From here

Appreciate your analysis of the covid / Alzheimer’s research comparison, really interesting insights. Totally agree the explosion of Covid research was incredible to behold!

I do agree with you re headlines. But a few years ago, I started working with researchers and specifically Alzheimer’s researchers (not in a sciencey role at all). It has been such a long slog and there have been so many failures that the simple fact that there is now proof we can modify this disease really is momentous. Medical research is such a long game, especially Alzheimer’s research, which is chronically underfunded.

This quote from a recent article struck me:

“Earlier this year, De Strooper searched the US medical database PubMed for dementia. He found 250,000 studies. He then searched for cancer and found 4.7m. Next, he searched for Covid, a disease that didn’t exist before 2019, and found 300,000 studies. It’s a rough metric, but it suggests that more research has been done on Covid in the past three years than on dementia in the past century.”

Edit - I am very sorry you are having to watch a loved one go through AD, it is truly such a cruel disease.