My brother saw this on the news last night – tests are being done on humans in Calgary, Alberta. I will fax our specialist asking if “we” are eligible. Please pass the word to anyone you know who may need this info.

But now researchers are helping to test a new drug that is offering hope.

The way it works is similar to a vaccine.

Given to patients intravenously every 13 weeks, its job is to find and dissolve plaques that build up in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients.

“It goes into the brain and it’s designed to attach to the plaques to sort of chew it up and get it out of the body just like your immune system would remove infection or things that don’t belong,” says Dr. Douglas Scharre.

Dr. Scharre is helping to test the drug. He says it’s favourable that these brain plaques are made up of proteins — because, unlike cancer or certain viruses they won’t try to outsmart the medicine.

“It’s virtually the same in almost everyone you know very little differences. So the target can be made very specific for it. So it does not mutate, it’s not a virus, it’s a stable protein.”

After success in the lab, the drug is now in large scale tests in humans. The researchers are hoping the drug will someday make Alzheimer’s just a memory.