Agency says new Alzheimer’s drug should not be included in Canada’s public drug plans
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Lacanumab, a drug used to slow early-stage Alzheimer’s disease, should not be included in public drug plans, Canada’s drug agency said in a draft recommendation Thursday.
Lecanimab is a lab-made antibody given by intravenous infusion twice a month. It targets the buildup of amyloid plaques in the brain, a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. The medicine is not a cure and cannot reverse the disease or restore lost memories.
an estimated 772,000 Canadians have dementiaWhich gradually damages memory and thinking ability. Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia.
Health Canada conditionally announced this in October 2025 allowed Medicine. At the time, the Alzheimer Society of Canada called it the first disease to replace Alzheimer’s. Treatment It has been approved for use in the country and is keeping people in the mild stage of the disease for longer. Current medications reduce symptoms rather than eliminate them change course Of disease.
The drug was approved in more than 50 countries due to the drug company’s clinical trials, which found it reduced the rate of cognitive and functional decline by 27 percent compared to placebo over 18 months.
Dr. Howard Chertko, scientific director of the consortium and a senior scientist at Baycrest Health Sciences Center in Toronto, compared lecanmab’s improvements to a first-base hit rather than a home run.
“This will be difficult news for the many individuals and families affected by Alzheimer’s disease, despite this not being a final recommendation,” the Alzheimer’s Society of Canada said in a statement on its website.
Decision from the Canadian Drug Agency Open for feedback till March 5 Before final recommendation.
The Fédération Québecois des Sociétés Alzheimers has launched a bilingual website to help identify the early symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease.
Medicines not approved by other agencies
According to the agency, the projected treatment cost was approximately $30,000 per year, depending on the patient’s weight.
According to the drug company, patients must have documented presence of amyloid plaques in the brain Christian Said.
Patients should also seek testing for gene variants associated with negative side effects, which can include rare but serious microbleeds and swelling in the brain. The new treatment is only available for patients who have one or no copies of a gene variant called APOE4.
In December 2025, Quebec’s equivalent drug agency, rejected Listing Lecanmab.
In 2024, of britain The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) concluded that the benefits of lecanumab were too small to justify the cost to the publicly funded health system of providing the treatment, which includes giving the drug and monitoring for side effects.
Anyone taking the drug requires ongoing monitoring, usually with a PET scan or MRI, to ensure safety and effectiveness.
