Drugs breakthrough for dementia

Hundreds of thousands more of dementia patients could be helped by two drugs that temporarily halt its symptoms, according to researchers Thursday. In a trial, the treatments, which cost as little as 50 pence (half a pound) a day, gave sufferers in the later stages of the disease precious extra months to live independently and hold coherent conversations. At present the two drugs - donepezil, more commonly known as Aricept, and memantine, or Exbixa - are given to only about 50,000 patients in the early stages of Alzheimer's. Donepezil, more commonly known as Aricept, is only given to around 50,000 patients in the early stages of Alzheimer's. Once the illness has progressed beyond a certain point, prescriptions are usually stopped because the drugs are not thought to have any further benefit. But based on the findings of a ground-breaking study carried out at King's College London, experts believe the drugs could help 450,000 advanced sufferers in the UK. Memory loss could be prevented in Alzheimer's patients by targeting a chemical that dismantles brain connections.