Who is taking Azilect/Rasagaline (neuroprotector to delay PD progression)?

==> January 1, 2009 Letter sent to Support Group

Hi folks.

Happy New Year to you!!! 2009 is going to be a great year!

Here is a very interesting article on Rasagiline (aka Azilect) which has shown to slow PD progression and to be neuroprotective. I know that Elizabeth is taking the new drug and I’m going to start very soon (Jan12). If you haven’t talked to your Neurologist about Rasagiline, you may want to soon. Just a suggestion.

Take care and I’ll see you on Jan18.

Dana

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From: WE MOVE News [mailto:wemovenews@wemove.org] Sent: Tuesday, December 23, 2008 8:01 AMTo: Dana HodgkinsSubject: Drug Treatment MAY Slow Progression of Parkinson Disease


12/23/2008
Drug Treatment May Slow the Progression of Parkinson Disease

Background

One of the main areas of research in Parkinson disease (PD) for many years has been to try to find a drug that will slow disease progression. This is called disease modification or neuroprotection. Researchers have identified a number of compounds, or drugs, that they thought would be neuroprotective. Researchers then studied these drugs in the laboratory, and, when promising, tested them in animals. Unfortunately, and despite many attempts, when these drugs were studied in people with PD, researchers were not able to prove that any of these drugs slowed disease progression. However, at the 2008 meeting of the American Neurological Association, researchers presented new evidence that the drug rasagiline may have disease-modifying effects in people with PD.

What is Rasagiline?

Rasagiline is a drug that blocks the chemical breakdown of dopamine through the enzyme, monoamine oxidase-b. (This class of drugs is commonly called MAO-B inhibitors). Dopamine helps nerve cells in the brain communicate with each other by sending signals, including signals about movement. The key problem in PD is that there is not enough dopamine in the brain. Without enough dopamine, communication breaks down, and movement is affected.
There are a number of ways to increase dopamine levels in the brain. One way is to add dopamine, and another is to stop dopamine from being broken down. One drug that is often used to treat PD is levodopa. This drug directly increases the levels of dopamine in the brain. Rasagiline is a drug that blocks dopamine from being broken down and is approved to treat the symptoms of PD. In addition, there is laboratory evidence that rasagiline may slow the rate of cell death, that is, that it may be neuroprotective.

Who Were the Patients Who Took Part in the Study?

Beginning in 2005, more than 1100 people with early PD took part in a study to test the potential for rasagiline to have a disease-modifying affect. Their PD symptoms had not previously been treated.

What Did the Researchers Do?

The researchers designed a study that would allow them to tell if the drug being tested was slowing down the disease. They randomly assigned patients to one of three groups. One group received a sugar pill that looked just like the rasagiline pill but that did not contain any of the medicine (a placebo). Another group began taking 1 mg of rasagiline every day. The third group began taking 2 mg of rasagiline every day. After 36 weeks, the people who were taking the placebo were randomly assigned to begin taking either 1 mg or 2 mg of rasagiline. The people already taking rasagiline continued to take their same dose of medicine. The study ended after 72 weeks. This study design, called a "delayed start," allowed the researchers to see if the drug was simply treating the symptoms of PD or was actually slowing down the progression of the disease.

What Did the Researchers Find?

The researchers found that patients who took the 1-mg dose of rasagiline from the beginning (early-start group) did better at the end of the study than those who started receiving the same dose in the middle of the study (delayed-start group). Because the group that received the drug earlier showed benefits that were not seen in the group that started later, researchers suggested that the longer treatment helped slow the disease process more than the shorter treatment did. No such benefit was seen in the group that was taking the 2-mg dose of rasagiline. Although the 2-mg dose effectively treated the symptoms of PD, there was not a significant difference between those people who started taking this dose of the drug at the beginning of the study and those who started taking the dose after 36 weeks. Why a higher dose would not offer more benefit than the lower dose, as far as disease modification, is unclear.

Does Rasagiline Actually Slow the PD Disease Process, and Should I Be Taking Rasagiline to Slow My PD?

It is too soon to know whether the results from this trial definitely prove that rasagiline slows the progress of PD, but, since the results of this trial (named "ADAGIO") are similar to those of an earlier study (named "TEMPO"), researchers are cautiously optimistic. Mores studies are needed to further understand possible neuroprotective or disease-modifying effects of rasagiline (and of other drugs or treatments) in people with PD.

Olanow CW, Rascol O. Early rasagiline treatment slow UPDRS decline in the ADAGIO delayed start study. Presented at the 133rd Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Neurology, Salt Lake City, UT, September 23, 2008. Abstract number WIP-11.

Parkinson Study Group. A controlled trial of rasagiline in early Parkinson's disease (The TEMPO Study). Arch Neurol 2002;59:1937-43.

Dopamine: Dopamine is a type of neurotransmitter-a chemical that nerve cells use to communicate with other nerve cells. Dopamine is especially important in nerve cells that send messages about movement. Enzyme: An enzyme is a protein made by the body's cells. There are chemical reactions that occur all the time in the body. Enzymes either speed up or slow down these reactions. Enzymes are not used up or permanently changed during the process. Neuroprotection: Neuroprotection includes strategies to protect nerve cells from injury or degeneration.


Published by WE MOVEJudith Blazer, Executive DirectorJoy B. Leffler, Director of EducationCate Murray and Richard Robinson, Medical EditorsLori Neste, Administrative CoordinatorCopyright © 2008 WE MOVE. All rights reserved.http://go.reachmail.net/rmgo.asp?tid=854175&eid=1217&sb_id=297068,297068 . http://go.reachmail.net/rmgo.asp?tid=854174&eid=1217&sb_id=297068,297068

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Christmas 2008 - Luncheon Celebration

The Southern Maine Young Onset Parkinsons Support Group held their December meeting at the Muddy Rudder restaurant in Yarmouth to celebrate the Holidays and spread some joyous cheer. Members attending were (1st row) Elizabeth Papps, Sue Withington (co-leader), Leslie Weiner, Neal Weiner, (2nd row) Roland Sirois, Claire Sirois, Ken Nye, Kathy Hodgkins, Mark Higgins, (3rd row) Tom Meyn, and Dana Hodgkins (co-leader). The group meets the 3rd Sunday of each month 1:00pm-3:00 usually at a member’s home. All are welcome to attend because “young onset” is a state of mind more than anything else. Contact Dana (207-839-7951) or Sue (207-725-0035) for more information and the next month’s meeting location.

Introduction and Purpose

We are a Young Onset Parkinsons Disease (YOPD) support group. Our active membership hovers around 18, made up of parkies and care-providers. We are "young onset" technically because the majority of us parkies were diagnosed with the disease prior to age 60. We don't pay much attention to age because "young onset" is a state of mind more than anything else. All are welcome.

The group meets the 3rd Sunday of each month 1:00-3:00pm, usually at a member’s home. Contact Dana Hodgkins (207-839-7951) or Susan Withington (207-725-0035) for more information and the next month’s meeting location.

The purpose of this blog is to share information, experiences, and knowledge.... which is power... the power to control and win over this progressive neurological disease.