Alzheimer's Breakthrough

Jennifer Matthews: Most days, you'll find Frances Goldstein right here. Frances Goldstein: I like to paint a lot. Jennifer Matthews: Jacobo, her husband of 45 years, loves watching her mind at work. Frances has Alzheimer's disease, diagnosed eight years ago at age 56. Jacobo Goldstein: For the first nine months, I couldn't tell her the word Alzheimer's, because I was afraid, you know, that she might go into tremendous shock. Jennifer Matthews: Instead, Frances fought back. For three years, she's been in a study testing a drug that could change her prognosis. Paul Aisen: This drug is attacking the cause of Alzheimer's disease. If it works, it will change the course of the disease and that will represent a real breakthrough. Jennifer Matthews: The drug called Alzhemed attacks amyloid peptide, the molecule that causes Alzheimer's. In mice, watch as the drug clears the molecule from the brain. Paul Aisen: I think, it's tremendously significant. Jennifer Matthews: An early study shows Alzhemed stabilized the disease in nearly half of patients. Now, more than a 1,000 are being followed. Paul Aisen: If the phase three study confirms that the drug is effective, we will have a way of slowing the progression of Alzheimer's disease for the first time. Jennifer Matthews: Frances takes Alzhemed twice a day. Jacobo Goldstein: I don't know where we would be if it wasn't for this. We have no idea. I know what she does now. If we could stay the way we are, we would be forever grateful. Jennifer Matthews: With hope in hand, Frances continues to make every day and every painting count. This is Jennifer Matthews reporting.