Drug can slow down disease says Irish prof

Lifestyle change may 'cut dementia by 45%'

- BY CIARA O'LOUGHLIN

THERE has never been “such positivity” about treatments for Alzheimer's, and big changes will come in just a few months, an immunologist has claimed.

A drug that will slow down the disease was recently approved by the European Medicines Agency.

Recent studies also suggest the shingles vaccine may be associated with a reduced risk of developing Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia.

Some research has indicated a 20% lower risk of developing the disease over a seven-year period.

Speaking to the Irish Daily Star, Professor Luke O'Neill said: “There was a big conference in Vienna two weeks ago, which I wasn't at but I saw the reports, and you've never heard such a positivity.

It was the phrase they were using and as to what's happening with things like Alzheimer's.”