With the largest generation in history living through their golden years, it’s likely someone you know is affected by Alzheimer’s disease. And promising news for patients and families experiencing Alzheimer’s disease was reported from West Virginia University (WVU) in October 2018. In phase II of an ongoing clinical trial, investigators and healthcare professionals at the Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute used ultrasound to treat a patient with Alzheimer’s. The ultrasound treatment, an innovative piece of technology made in Israel, is called INSIGHTEC. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not approved the INSIGHTEC for widespread use but is supporting and optimistically watching the results of the WVU clinical trial. (1)
The Possibilities For INSIGHTEC
INSIGHTEC is an incisionless form of surgery, that acts to open the patient’s blood-brain barrier and improve blood flow via ultrasound. No pharmaceuticals are required by patients before or after the procedure. Such treatment is important to the management of a disease like Alzheimer’s, which overtime diminishes blood flow to the brain’s hippocampus (the region responsible for learning and memory). Yet, the INSIGHTEC could theoretically be used to treat other diseases processes that limit blood flow around, or occur within the blood-brain barrier. The blood-brain barrier is a very selective membrane in the human body, typically hard to reach with medications or other forms of surgery. (1)
Photo courtesy of WVU Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute
Preliminary Results
The study at WVU is the second of two trials using INSIGHTEC technology. The first phase took place at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto. This initial trial confirmed that INISHTEC can safely, and reversibly open the blood-brain barrier. Additional human trials were approved based on the results of this Canadian study. (2)
Judi, the first patient to receive the INISGHTEC treatment at WVU, was a 61-year-old nurse who had to stop working due to short-term memory loss induced by Alzheimer’s disease. Judi’s procedure lasted three hours and had MRI testing done afterward to confirm blood flow was increased to the hippocampus. She left the hospital in good spirits that same day, and her medical team is hopeful she will see results, but official findings may take several years to verify. Additionally, side effects and risks for complications from the INISGHTEC technology have not been made publicly available.
Photo courtesy of WVO Medicine
The lead neurosurgeon, Dr. Ali Rezai, told WVU medicine news, “I am hopeful that focused ultrasound opening of the blood-brain barrier will prove to be a valuable treatment option for Judi and other patients with early Alzheimer’s who are confronting the enormous challenges associated with the disease on a daily basis.” (1)
A Way Forward
Unfortunately, there is no known cure or treatment to reverse the progress of Alzheimer’s disease at present day. A possible means to stop this chronic disease is a significant deal, not only at the individual level but for the entire 5.4 million Americans and their families impacted by Alzheimer’s. More patients since Judi have participated in the INSIGHTEC trial and additional patients are needed to verify results. To see if you or a family member might be eligible, please call 304-293-5150 or email WVURNI@hsc.wvu.edu. (1)
