There are tremendous emotional costs involved. There are equally devastating medical and care costs. Is there any hope on the horizon?

We do not as of yet know the cause(s) of Alzheimer's disease. There isn't even a definitive way to accurately diagnose the condition while the patient is still alive. This, unfortunately, can only be done by studying the brain post-mortem at autopsy.

And there is no treatment. There is no prevention. There is no cure.

Researchers around the world are working at a furious pace on all aspects of Alzheimer's disease. Many of the underlying genetic and pathological features are being elucidated.

Ante-mortem diagnosis is getting much better. Dr. Peter Seubert, writing in the Alzheimer's Disease Review (vol. 1, no. 1-2, pp. 84-86, 1996: see paper), reports:

"In dementia specialty clinics, the diagnostic procedure often includes detailed psychometric testing and brain imaging, along with routine blood tests and a neurological exam. The process is typically repeated several times over a period of years to verify the progressing dementia associated with AD. An accuracy of diagnosis rate of ~85-90% is typically reported from such specialty clinics, ultimately based on comparison to the current standard of the post-mortem neuropathological exam."

There are a number of drugs now becoming available to treat some of the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease -- but they do not address the underlying cause(s) or slow the advance of the disease.

... until now, that is!

For the first time ever, there is now strong evidence that we may have one or several drugs that will attack the cause(s) of Alzheimer's disease and slow its insidious progression! What is this potential "wonder" drug?

Is it some strange chemical with a long, unpronounceable name? Is it a drug that must be synthesized and therefore will be very expensive? Is it an agent that will have to be greatly modified to eliminate harsh side-effects?

The answer is an emphatic "No!" to all of these questions. The "drug" is Vitamin E. But please read on and don't rush out quite yet and start taking it in mega-doses.

On April 24th of this year (1997) a seminal paper on the potential treatment of Alzheimer's disease was published in the highly respected New England Journal of Medicine (vol. 336, no. 17, pp. 1216-1222).

The research was conducted by Dr. Mary Sano, who is a neuropsychologist at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, her colleagues, and members of the Alzheimer's Disease Cooperative Study. The paper is entitled:

"A controlled trial of selegiline, alpha-tocopherol, or both as treatment for Alzheimer's disease." To review the abstract of this exciting paper, please click here.

Alpha-tocopherol is what you and I call Vitamin E. Selegiline is also known as L-Deprenyl and has already been approved as safe and effective for the treatment of Parkinson's disease.

Sano et al. showed that either 2000 International Units (IU)/day of Vitamin E or 10 mg/day of selegiline (as compared to placebo) helped slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease in patients with moderately severe impairment.

For comparison, please note that the U.S. Government Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for Vitamin E is only 30 IU/day.

Oddly, the combination of Vitamin E and selegiline did not have an additive effect but rather was less efficacious than either chemical when given alone (but still an improvement over placebo).

Only 341 patients were used in this initial study. The study duration was just two years. Additional, larger studies will have to be conducted to confirm and expand these preliminary results. Also, there is no evidence to date that taking mega-doses of Vitamin E will in any way help prevent the onset of Alzheimer's disease.

This is the first major breakthrough that could lead to a treatment for Alzheimer's disease. Its announcement electrified the biomedical community and has given well-grounded hope to all concerned about the disease!