March 28, 2024

The Daily Mail in England has this very interesting story about Enbrel that seems to give hope to the millions of people worldwide that suffer from Alzheimers disease.

Doctors are calling for a clinical trial of an experimental drug treatment that it is claimed can reverse the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease “in minutes”.

U.S. researchers say the treatment allowed an 82-year- old sufferer to recognize his wife for the first time in years.

In the UK, specialists believe the claims should be properly tested as only a few patients have been treated so far.
The treatment involves injecting a drug called Enbrel – which is normally used to treat arthritis – into the spine at the neck.

What is Enbrel?

Enbrel is a type of protein called a tumor necrosis factor (TNF) blocker that blocks the action of a substance your body’s immune system makes called TNF. People with an immune disease, such as rheumatoid arthritis, juvenile idiopathic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis, or psoriasis, have too much TNF in their bodies. Enbrel can reduce the amount of active TNF in the body to normal levels, helping to treat your disease. But, in doing so, ENBREL can also lower the ability of your immune system to fight infections.

Serious infections, including tuberculosis (TB), have happened in patients taking ENBREL. Some of these serious infections have been fatal. Many serious infections occurred in people prone to infection. Serious infections have also occurred in patients with advanced or poorly controlled diabetes. Do not start Enbrel if you have an infection or are allergic to ENBREL or its components. Once on Enbrel , if you get an infection or have any sign of an infection, including fever, cough, or flu-like symptoms, or have open sores, tell your doctor. Your doctor should test you for TB before starting Enbrel and should monitor you closely for signs and symptoms of TB.

Patients are then tilted to encourage blood flow into the brain where the drug is designed to block a chemical responsible for inflammation. At least one Alzheimer’s patient had his symptoms reversed “in minutes” while others have shown some continuing improvement in problems such as forgetfulness and confusion after weekly injections.

They needed less help from carers during treatment, which appears to reach a plateau at three months.

Enbrel Study Results

Around 50 people are being treated by the Institute of Neurological Research, a private clinic in California, with some having had injections for three years.

In one case, the clinic has video evidence of Marvin Miller, 82, which showed he was unable to answer basic questions by a nurse, or identify-everyday objects like a bracelet and a pencil.

Shortly afterwards he is injected with the drug and it is claimed that five minutes later he could greet his shocked wife, who said he had not recognized her for years.

The experiment follows the discovery that levels of TNF (tumour necrosis factor) can be up to 25 times higher in the fluid surrounding the brain in sufferers of Alzheimer’s disease.

Enbrel, a biologic treatment licensed for rheumatoid arthritis, binds to excess TNF in the body and makes it inactivate.

When used by arthritis sufferers, the drug is self-administered by injection and researchers had to develop a way of injecting the drug into the spine in order to get an effect in brain cells.

Enbrel is not approved for treating Alzheimer’s in the U.S. or in the UK and is regarded at this stage as a highly experimental therapy, if you are looking for a cure we suggest to look at other treatments for neurological disorders instead.

Professor Edward Tobinick, of the University of California Los Angeles and director of the Institute for Neurological Research, is leading the research. He said the latest report was an in-depth account of one patient’s response to treatment.

“It makes practical changes that are significant and perceptible, making a difference to his ability to do activities of daily living such as getting around, accomplishing things and conversing.”

He added: “Some patients have been able to start driving again. They don’t come back to normal but the change is good enough for patients to want to continue treatment, and some have been doing so for three years. “We are working with several universities and larger trials are getting under way.”

Dr Susanne Sorensen, head of research at the Alzheimer’s Society, said: “On the surface these results are exciting but we need to treat the study with caution.

“There are large gaps in the research, which only involved a small pilot group and we cannot draw any conclusions until a controlled trial is carried out.”

Rebecca Wood, chief executive of the Alzheimer’s Research Trust, said: “It is too early to speak of a miracle cure and we need to do more research into Enbrel.”

13 thoughts on “Enbrel to try to cure Alzheimers

  1. Have you any information on cerebrolysin and it’s effect
    Treatment in USA is off brand
    It is recognized in 47 countries including Canada

  2. This treatment is experimental however, if it is effective in improving the wellbeing of people with Alzheimers it is worth trying in my opinion. Alzheimers is a terminal disease with an average survival of 4 years from diagnosis. It robs sufferers of their quality of life and is having a devastating impact on the people all over the world. I consider that it would be unethical to conduct randomized controlled human trials of a drug (which has already been shown to be effective) just because scientists want to know about “the uptake” of the drug in the brain. This drug should be made freely available as a palliative therapy for people with Alzheimers to give them and their families back some quality of life.

    1. HALLELUIAH! As I’ve tried to tell others, (IMHO) any improvement and stability outweighs any risks or side effects of Enbrel. This is a devastating disease to the patient and all that know and love them.

      Please keep in mind that this isn’t a one time treatment, it needs to be continued for the rest of their life till something better comes along.

  3. My Mom did the Enbrel treatment from Dr. Tobinick and it did indeed work wonders. It has to be continued though, and to do that costs about $2500/month, for the rest of their life. If it keeps someone out of an care facility that can cost on the average of $3500/month, then it is worth it. If they are already unable to care for themselves then it is probably too late for Dr. Tobinick’s treatment to work. This is not a scam, no matter how many things people tell you about the doctor or the medicine. Look on the internet on youtube and at Alz.org message board Enbrel for Alzheimer’s (http://alzheimers.infopop.cc/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/762104261/m/4081064272) to hear about all of the pro’s and cons. It hasn’t been through a trial yet, and that is the problem…but it is real. How sad that this is taking so long to get out to the public.

    Thanks.

    1. My sister is 58yrs and has been diagnosed in early stages of dementia. I have phoned and left messages on answer service at Griffith Uni where they are, according to the 60 mins TV program, going to start trialing perispinal Etanersept. If something so powerful has had such amazing results in the USA why on earth can’t we have neurosurgeons all over working on these trials in their own surgerys? When you have no hope what the hell ! My sister wants to be part of anything that might help. She’s now talking suicide. No amount of psychiatry helps hopelessness. She watched our mother go down this path and doesn’t want to go there.

  4. Alzheimer’s disease is an incurable disease that has elderly people going coco for Cocoa puffs. This disease cause a lot of problems and the main problem is memory loss. Can they find a cure? You could find some valuable information at this blog.

  5. Hi Johann,
    I am so sorry to hear you got ripped off and that Enbrel did not work out for your mother. I suppose it’s not quite the miracle cure I had thought either. In the end though, I would still try it, if I could, if I didn’t think it was too late, just to have one good visit with my Dad where he could talk and remember and meet his new grandkids. If nothing else, for that. Maybe it could be developed as last chance booster therapy, for those who are losing it. You know, like, the doctor says, “you only get 12 doses before it stops working – use them wisely”, or something. 12 chances to plug the mind back in before it’s lost forever. I don’t know, it’s just a thought. Again i’m sorry you got ripped off. I’m sorry you had to pay out of pocket and I KNOW how expensive Enbrel is. Best wishes to you and your mother, Tabitha

  6. Dear Tabitha and whoever reads this. I must “repent” contrary to my previous comment. ENBREL did not have lasting effects. . . It helped at first but like Steroids it was temporary. Our joy with this “miracle” cure was suddenly and sadly brought to a sudden dishearten end. At the extremely expensive cost, my conclusion is that we were ripped off. Dr Tobinic and his farmacuitile friends should be ashamed for making a fortune out of desperate people. My mother seemed to deteriorate at a faster rate than she was deteriorating after Dr. Tobinic’s false cure. I am sorry for my posting my previous comments as it might have unjustly fattened Dr Tobinic and his coherer’s pockets…

    1. Dear Johann,
      The fact that it worked for your Loved One proves again that it works! It is not long lasting, Dr. Tobinick never said it was. The treatment needs to be continued for the rest of their lives which is one of the biggest problems since the drug itself costs so much. My Mom needed an injection every week for the first year. Some patients only need it once a month. I believe the average is 25 mg every 2 weeks. I’m sorry I didn’t see this post until now and I hope its not too late for your loved one. Please go back to your doctor and try the treatment on a continuous basis.
      Sincerely, Felicia

  7. I know this article is from last year, as are the comments. That is part of what makes my posting here so sad. It has been more than a year since this wonderful information has been “put out there” but instead of helping countless tortured souls, it is yet another “factoid” that has slipped away into non-relevance, unimportance and non-urgency.

    Five years ago, my 58 year old father was a thriving diesel mechanic. Now, he is reduced to a babbling, drooling, violent, drugged up, hollow shell of a man. He doesn’t know me, himself, his sister who visits him in his very restrictive nursing home. When he is visited, he cries, just cries now, I am told. I live too far away now to visit. I told my Aunt about Enbrel when I first heard about it last year ( my husband had been taking it for arthritis so I heard early) but there was no way she could get it. Now it is too late for him.

    When it comes to illnesses like alzheimers, especially when the patient doesn’t have long – If it’s a PRE-EXISTING medication KNOWN to be safe then just frikkin GIVE IT TO THEM.

    All alzheimers patients should be taking Enbrel, smoking POT and CIGGARETTES, taking aspirin and garlic (if no blood thinning problems exist) and be put on a strict diet crafted by nutritionists. LOOK IT UP.

    My father is lost forever. I can only pray he doesn’t suffer much. He will never know he is newest grandchildren or even know they exist. He will never leave his nursing home or eat pepperoni pizza with jalpenos again. It is too late for him.

    I will pray that somehow, mankind gets some COMMON F***IN SENSE and just helps these people. Too much BS and not enough brains………

  8. I agree with D Bader and Marion. We can’t sit around while doctors play with mice for years and then beggingly ask permission from the so called “FDA” to try and rescue our elderly Alzheimer suffering loved ones. I got a South African doctor who is still from the old school of doctors, who agreed to inject my mother (84) with this peri-spinal method. It is like a miracle as the progress is definite and surely. Whoever disputes this, have, in my opinion, a hidden agenda. This is your hope people . . . grab it before it is too late. Don’t let some burocrats stop your elderly from getting better. I have no interest whatsoever in medicine or whatever everybody uses but strongly wishes to recommend people to try this “Enbrel” and see for themselves. I have tried all known drugs for over 10 years to try and help my mother and this has been the only one I will “kill for” to keep on helping her. My e-mail, jcjnot@mweb.co.za

  9. It is terrible to put people through this waiting for treatment. If someone is going to die shortly, because of this disease, they should be able to get treatment. This is bad for the family and the person with the disease.

  10. Why must we wait through interminable amounts of time for trials and studies, when millions of people are slipping into the pits of hell we call alzheimers. What does anyone with alzheimers have to lose? Get things out there if there is even the slightest possibility they can work, what could be worse than dying the slow torturess death of alzheimers.

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