Beginning Of The End For Alzheimer's?
YOU South Africa|5 August 2021
It was a breakthrough moment: the recent announcement that a new Alzheimer’s drug, the first for 20 years, has been approved for use in America. In this interview John Hardy, the British scientist behind it, explains what the development means for people who are suffering from the disease
Tom Whipple
Beginning Of The End For Alzheimer's?

ALMOST four decades ago a desperate woman sent John Hardy a letter.

“Dear Sir,” Carol Jennings, from Nottingham in England, wrote in her careful handwriting. “I was very interested to read of your research in the Alzheimer’s Disease Society News and think my family could be of use.” Her 63-year-old father had Alzheimer’s, she said, “as does his sister, Audrey. His brother, Arthur, also may have the disease”.

Hardy remembers reading it.

“She said, ‘My doctor keeps telling me it doesn’t run in the family, but here’s my family tree, and it clearly does’.” Throughout her family were people who developed Alzheimer’s and did so in their 50s, and she wanted answers.”

This is the letter that launched a thousand studies, the letter that, in a roundabout way, led to investments worth billions. And recently, 35 years after Carol sent it and more than a decade after she started losing her mind – as she always feared she would – came a vindication of sorts.

It arrived in a factsheet for doctors produced by the US Food and Drug Administration in June, giving information on the country’s newest drug. “ADUHELM,” it began, “is an amyloid beta-directed antibody indicated for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.”

With that mundane opening sentence an experimental drug became a clinical one. The US regulators had, at last, approved a drug to treat Alzheimer’s – the first in 20 years.

This story is from the 5 August 2021 edition of YOU South Africa.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the 5 August 2021 edition of YOU South Africa.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM YOU SOUTH AFRICAView All
'I'M BACK!'
YOU South Africa

'I'M BACK!'

ACK!’ Scandal after scandal hits Jacob Zuma, yet nothing ever brings him down. Now he’s plotting his return to parliament and he’s hinted he has his heart set on another term as president

time-read
4 mins  |
25 April 2024
A BRAIN YOU CAN COUNT ON
YOU South Africa

A BRAIN YOU CAN COUNT ON

Meet Aaryan Shukla, the 13-year-old from India whos just been crowned the worlds fastest human calculator

time-read
3 mins  |
25 April 2024
FUN WHILE IT LASTED
YOU South Africa

FUN WHILE IT LASTED

It's all over for oddball couple Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher

time-read
5 mins  |
25 April 2024
THE TEEN MACHINE!
YOU South Africa

THE TEEN MACHINE!

Manchester United star Kobbie Mainoo has set the footballing world alight with his dazzling displays

time-read
4 mins  |
25 April 2024
A BETTER LIFE FOR ELIJAH
YOU South Africa

A BETTER LIFE FOR ELIJAH

A rare condition means this little boy can't bend his arms and legs, but his parents are doing everything they can to give him a normal life

time-read
5 mins  |
25 April 2024
A DOCTOR'S JOURNEY
YOU South Africa

A DOCTOR'S JOURNEY

He chose to do one of the toughest jobs in medicine: looking after children who were dying. In this moving extract from his memoir, Cape Town paediatrician Alastair McAlpine reveals how, with wisdom and humour, sick kids taught him crucial lessons that changed his approach to life

time-read
10+ mins  |
25 April 2024
'SA WILL ALWAYS BE PART OF ME'
YOU South Africa

'SA WILL ALWAYS BE PART OF ME'

Cindy Nell-Roberts is starting a new lite Down Under with her family. She tells YOU about the chaotic but happy p ansliepent why shes missing home

time-read
5 mins  |
25 April 2024
HOW TO SPOT A NARCISSIST
YOU South Africa

HOW TO SPOT A NARCISSIST

They often look like the most confident person in the room, but narcissists are insecure and desperate for validation, says a new book

time-read
7 mins  |
25 April 2024
DEFIANT TO THE END
YOU South Africa

DEFIANT TO THE END

He went from star athlete to Hollywood hero and ended up a reviled criminal but OJ Simpson remained unapologetic

time-read
4 mins  |
25 April 2024
BRING IT ON TAMMY!
YOU South Africa

BRING IT ON TAMMY!

Peet and Mel Viljoen arent going to let threats deter them from their fabulous life

time-read
5 mins  |
25 April 2024