Alzheimer's Drug Research Breakthroughs Timeline

Alzheimer's drug research breakthroughs refer to the scientific milestones — from the disease's first clinical description in 1906 to the recent approval of am…

Dr. Alois Alzheimer Identifies the Disease That Would Bear His Name

On 4 November 1906, German psychiatrist Alois Alzheimer presented the case of Auguste Deter — a 51-year-old woman who had died after years of memory loss, confusion, and…

Scientists Isolate Amyloid-Beta Protein from Alzheimer's Brain Plaques

In 1984, neurochemist George Glenner and Caine Wong at the University of California isolated and characterised the amyloid-beta peptide from the cerebrovascular deposits…

The Amyloid Cascade Hypothesis Published, Defining Three Decades of Drug Strate…

In 1992, John Hardy and Gerald Higgins published a landmark paper in Science proposing the amyloid cascade hypothesis: that the accumulation of amyloid-beta in the brain…

FDA Approves Tacrine — The First Drug Authorised for Alzheimer's Disease

On 9 September 1993, the US Food and Drug Administration approved tacrine (Cognex) as the first drug specifically indicated for Alzheimer's disease. A cholinesterase inh…

Donepezil Gains FDA Approval, Becoming the Global Standard of Alzheimer's Care

The FDA approved donepezil (Aricept), developed by Eisai and Pfizer, in November 1996. Unlike tacrine, donepezil required only once-daily dosing and produced no signific…

AN-1792 Alzheimer's Vaccine Trial Halted After Brain Inflammation in Patients

In January 2002, Elan Corporation and Wyeth suspended the Phase 2 trial of AN-1792 — the first active immunotherapy designed to clear amyloid plaques — after approximate…

Eli Lilly's Solanezumab Phase 3 Trial Fails, Triggering a Crisis of Faith in th…

In November 2016, Eli Lilly announced that solanezumab — an antibody targeting soluble amyloid-beta — had failed its Phase 3 EXPEDITION3 trial, showing no significant sl…

FDA Approves Aducanumab Under Accelerated Pathway, Sparking the Most Contested…

On 7 June 2021, the FDA approved Biogen's aducanumab (Aduhelm) under its Accelerated Approval pathway, using amyloid reduction — rather than demonstrated cognitive benef…

FDA Grants Full Approval to Lecanemab — The First Drug Proven to Slow Alzheimer…

On 6 January 2023, the FDA granted accelerated approval to lecanemab (Leqembi), developed by Eisai and Biogen, based on the Phase 3 CLARITY AD trial involving 1,795 pati…

Eli Lilly's Donanemab Approved, Showing Even Greater Benefit in Early-Stage Pat…

On 2 July 2024, the FDA approved Eli Lilly's donanemab (Kisunla), based on the Phase 3 TRAILBLAZER-ALZ 2 trial of 1,736 patients. Among participants with low-to-medium t…

Plasma p-tau217 Blood Test Validated as a Reliable Alzheimer's Diagnostic, Tran…

Through 2024, multiple independent studies — including a landmark paper in JAMA published in July 2024 — validated plasma phosphorylated tau 217 (p-tau217) as a blood bi…