LONDON, ONT. -- Shiraz Mohammed is currently undergoing an immunotherapy treatment as part of an Alzheimer’s study taking place through Lawson Health Research.
It’s a study that he hopes, “Becomes something of benefit for people who have dementia or people who have lapses in memory and all that kind of stuff.”
Mohammed was diagnosed with dementia five years ago, “I thought everything was going well but the people around me realized I was making mistakes, small mistakes and things like that.”
He’s now part of a study using immunotherapy to remove one of two proteins in the brain. One protein is called Amyloid, the other Tau.
“This is an intravenous antibody into the veins and the antibody binds to the amyloid proteins, which is being deposited in the brain, and removes it from the brain,” explains Dr. Michael Borrie, associate scientist at Lawson Health Research Institute.
By using PET scans of the brain to track the removal of Amyloid or Tau, researchers can then see if removing these proteins will slow the progression of the disease or even improve some cognitive function.
There is also the question of how soon a treatment like this need to be done to be effective.
“It’s possible if you go late in the disease when the person already has moderate dementia that the damage may have already been done,” says Borrie.
This study is one of several taking place through Lawson focusing on Alzheimer’s and dementia and will be part of a talk that’s open to the public to attend, that will discuss advancements in research and the importance of this work.
The free talk takes place Tuesday, Jan. 21 at 4 p.m. in the auditorium at the Parkwood Institute.
