“I have a really humble goal. I want to have the greatest impact on human suffering than anyone else,” says Lou Reese, co-founder of the biotech company Vaxxinity. He may be able to do it. If all goes according to plan, by 2030 the company will have delivered a new drug that will revolutionize our approach to one of the world’s most feared diseases, and possibly even eradicate it.
The disease is Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia, causing untold suffering to people and their families. Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia are considered time bombs ready to explode in the brains of an increasingly aging population.
But now there appears to be a way out. Vaxxinity, based in Cape Canaveral, Florida, is developing a vaccine designed to halt the progression of Alzheimer’s disease or prevent it from developing in the first place. Several other companies are playing the same game, and the approach shows great promise. “Society is entering an era where the uncontrolled ravages of Alzheimer’s disease are no longer inevitable,” he says. Dennis Selkoe At Harvard Medical School.
An estimated 55 million people live with dementia, and this number is expected to rise to around 140 million by 2050, with devastating consequences for those with the condition, their families, and our health and social care systems.…
