logo
episode-header-image
Oct 2022
13m 5s

A New Drug For A Relentless Brain Diseas...

NPR
About this episode
ALS is a disease that destroys the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord we need for voluntary movement. There is no cure, but now there is a newly approved medication that may slow down the disease and extend patients' lives. The drug, called Relyvrio, got its start with a couple of college students, some "ice bucket challenge" money, and a new approach to targeting this disease. Neuroscience correspondent Jon Hamilton checks in with host Emily Kwong about why some advisors aren't persuaded the drug works and how you weigh promising but limited evidence against the backdrop of a 100% fatal disease with hardly any other treatment options?

To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy
Up next
Today
‘Black rain’ in Iran and the environmental cost of war
US-Israeli airstrikes on oil depots culminated in ‘black rain’ in Iran early last week – a phenomenon usually caused by large amounts of soot, carbon and other pollutants in the air. Usually, rain leaves the atmosphere cleaner than it was before. But in this case, the rain left T ... Show More
12m 50s
Yesterday
This is your brain on pleasure (even the guilty kind)
It’s likely you have at least one “guilty pleasure.” Maybe it’s romance novels. Or reality TV… Playing video games… or getting swept into obscure corners of TikTok. Neuroscientists say the pleasure response helps us survive as a species. So why do we feel embarrassed by some of t ... Show More
13m 41s
Mar 13
An icy mystery: What are lake stars?
When producer Berly McCoy was out on her local frozen lake, she saw something she'd never seen before. There were dark spidery, star-shaped patterns in the ice and they freaked her out. So, we called an expert to find out more about them. In today’s episode, geophysicist Victor T ... Show More
12m 20s
Recommended Episodes
Dec 2022
Declining ALS Patients Are Waiting On The FDA's Next Move
For many years, pharmaceutical companies have tried and failed to find a treatment to slow symptoms of ALS–the debilitating, fatal illness also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. A potentially promising new drug from Biogen may offer some relief to those afflicted with an uncommon an ... Show More
25m 57s
Oct 2018
Prognosis, a New Show From Bloomberg
Where does a medical cure come from? 100 years ago, it wasn't uncommon for scientists to test medicines by taking a dose themselves. As medical technologies get cheaper and more accessible, patients and DIY tinkerers are trying something similar—and mainstream medicine is racing ... Show More
1m 32s
Sep 2019
101: Have we found a cure for Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Depression and ALS? | Dr. Jay Lombard
If you’ve ever “gone with your gut” to make a decision or felt “butterflies in your stomach” when nervous, you’re likely getting signals from an unexpected source: your second brain. Hidden in the walls of the digestive system, this “brain in your gut” is revolutionizing medicine ... Show More
50m 16s
Aug 2020
The Promise of a New Treatment
The drug company Eli Lilly is about to start testing its Covid-19 antibody drug in nursing homes. Vaccines may not work as well on elderly people or those with compromised immune systems. Since these are the very groups most at risk for severe disease or death if they contract th ... Show More
11m 32s
Jan 2024
Surviving Noma disease
There are neglected tropical diseases, and then there is Noma, a severe gangrenous disease which tends to affect 2 to 6-year-olds and has a 90% fatality rate. Its quick onset means that often children die before they can get medical attention and it is thought that many medical p ... Show More
27m 32s
Apr 2021
Old Drugs, New Disease
As medical professionals search for new treatments to help Covid-19 patients, some researchers are taking a second look at drugs that have already been approved by the FDA. CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta talks to Dr. David Fajgenbaum about repurposing old drugs ... Show More
11m 31s