Drug to Delay Alzheimer’s Memory Loss Will Be Tested

WASHINGTON — The National Institute on Aging announced Thursday that it will sponsor the first full-scale study of a drug designed to delay the memory loss that accompanies Alzheimer’s disease, a devastating ailment that first destroys the mind and eventually kills its victims.

The study of the drug, known as THA, will be conducted on 300 patients at 17 sites nationwide, including three in California.

Several drugs have been studied in small experiments on Alzheimer’s, which primarily afflicts the elderly. But this project would be the first extensive effort to determine whether a drug can delay the stage at which victims no longer can recall words and names or even recognize family members, institute officials said.

Powerful Side Effects

In previous tests with THA, officially known as tetrahydroaminoacridine, memory loss was allayed in 16 of 17 patients. However, the drug often has powerful side effects, including nausea, diarrhea and possibly seizures.

“Even if it does prove both safe and effective, THA will never be a cure for Alzheimer’s disease,” said Dr. T. Franklin Williams, director of the National Institute on Aging.

He said that researchers hope the drug will help victims temporarily by slowing the dissipation of a chemical that facilitates the passage of signals between brain cells. Alzheimer’s disease, whose cause is not known, affects the memory by reducing the chemical’s level.

About 1.5 million Americans suffer from Alzheimer’s disease. Mental impairment is followed by physical deterioration, with the patient finally becoming bedridden and incontinent.

Three Funding Sources

The program is being funded with $2.1 million from the institute, $3 million from the Warner-Lambert Co., which manufactures THA, and $250,000 from the Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders Assn.

Information on the two-year study is available through two toll-free numbers: 1-800-621-0379 for all areas except Illinois. The number in Illinois is 1-800-572-6037. The California centers participating in the study are at UC San Diego, USC and the University of California Neuropsychiatric Institute, Los Angeles.

Officials said that to participate in the program, patients must be able to care for their daily needs, such as dressing themselves and eating, and must have a full-time care-giver who can provide transportation to clinics and ensure that the drug is taken.

Expresses Caution

A note of caution was sounded by Jerome Stone, chairman of the Alzheimer’s Disease Assn. “We don’t have high hopes or low hopes for THA,” he told a news conference. “We want to prove or disprove its efficiency.”

Rep. Edward R. Roybal (D-Los Angeles), who played a key role in arranging congressional approval of financing for the 17 Alzheimer’s study centers, said that he will introduce legislation to increase federal funding for research on the disease. He is proposing tripling federal spending to $175 million and offering matching funds to states with Alzheimer’s diagnosis and treatment programs.

“Even in these times of tight budgets, victims and their families and care-givers must be assured that they can count on the support of the entire nation to combat the catastrophe of Alzheimer’s disease,” Roybal said.