Lundbeck says Alzheimer's drug effective in trial

Danish drugmaker Lundbeck said patients who took its Alzheimer's drug candidate Lu AE58054 in a phase 2 clinical trial achieved statistically significant improvement in cognitive performance when the compound was added to donepezil.

Lundbeck said the clinical study in 278 patients suffering from Alzheimer's disease had achieved its main target and that Lu AE58054 was also well-tolerated in combination with donepezil.

"These results are very encouraging, and we are now evaluating how to best proceed with the development of Lu AE58054," Anders Pedersen, head of research and development at Lundbeck, said in the statement.

Lundbeck said Alzheimer's disease affects over 26 million people worldwide, and the cost to society has been reported as $600 billion per year.