Alzheimer's Drugs Cost Seven Times More Than Cancer Drugs to Develop

A study published in Alzheimer's and Dementia Translational Research and Clinical Interventions found developing any new Alzheimer's drugs, including failures, costs an estimated $5.7 billion, or double the average drug development costs, reports Quartz . The researchers added that developing a promising pipeline of Alzheimer's medications that follow several different strategies will cost $38.4 billion. In an ideal situation, clinical trials for Alzheimer's drugs would begin sooner, before symptom manifestation among participants, who are almost impossible to identify. Although scientists are working on ways to detect Alzheimer's biomarkers, there are none currently ready for clinical use. Moreover, the study authors estimate that it takes more than 13 years to put an Alzheimer's drug through all of the clinical trials required for clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. By comparison, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America reckons that this process takes an average 10 years for other drug types. Cancer drug development consumes far fewer resources and time than other types of medications, and cancer drug trials are much shorter, because success is quantified by increased survival rates, often building on existing treatments to make gradual improvements.