A new drug has been described by experts as a "turning point" in the fight against Alzheimer's disease.

Donanemab has been found to slow "clinical decline" by up to 35%, allowing those with Alzheimer's to continue carrying out everyday tasks such as housekeeping, shopping, looking after their finances and taking medication.

Health experts and various Alzheimer's charities have dubbed this drug as a "breakthrough" and are hopeful one day the disease "could become treatable".

Read more: Common lesser known early dementia signs you might miss and what to look out for

Here is all you need to know about Donanemab - how it works, the side effects and if it could come to Ireland.

How Donanemab works

The new drug, manufactured by US pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly, works by removing plaques of a protein called amyloid from the brain. This particular protein builds up in the brain of Alzheimer's patients and leads to problems with brain function.

Scientists have published the results of a trial called TRAILBLAZER ALZ-2, which examined the safety of the drug and how it works.

Almost 1,8000 people with early-stage Alzheimer's took part in the study. Half were given a monthly infusion of Donanemab into the bloodstream while the other half were given a placebo over the course of 18 months.

After this time, findings showed that the drug slowed clinical decline by 35.1% in people with early Alzheimer's who had low or medium levels of a protein called tau.

The results, published in the Journal of the Americal Medical Association, were combined for patients who had different levels of this protein and showed a 22.3% slowing in progression of the disease.

Eli Lilly said some patients taking the drug would be able to finish the six month long course of treatment once their amyloid plaque cleared up.

The pharmaceutical giant added treatment with Donanemab reduced amyloid plague by an average of 84% at 18 months. This compared to a 1% decrease for patients given the placebo.

Around 47% of those taking the drug who were in the early stages of the disease and had low or medium levels of tau were found to stall the disease for a year.

Side effects

Researchers found 1.6% of participants experienced serious side effects such as brain swelling.

Three deaths in the Donanemab group and one in the placebo group were considered "treatment related".

Is Donanemab available in Ireland?

Donanemab has only been used in trials and is not widely available.

The Alzheimer's Society of Ireland (The ASI) has welcomed this latest development and hopes that approved breakthrough drugs will be made available in Ireland.

The ASI Research and Policy Manager, Dr Laura O’Philbin, said: “The data published this afternoon indicates that Donanemab is another credible treatment option that can alter the course of Alzheimer’s Disease and slow its progression. This is a further scientific leap in the development of treatment options for Alzheimer’s Disease, and that is incredibly heartening. We have entered a new era of drug development, particularly as this news comes just two weeks after the FDA granted full approval to the Lecanemab drug in the United States.

“Here in Ireland, we await decisions from the European Medicines Agency, which is currently assessing the safety and efficacy of Lecanemab. While there are no guarantees, we are hopeful that if approved by regulators, disease-modifying therapies will reach Ireland in the next couple of years. Should this happen, significant work is required to ensure our health system is ready to deliver it, and that work must start now. It would be devastating if we had a safe and effective treatment that our health system could not deliver. The Alzheimer Society of Ireland looks forward to working with the Government, political representatives, clinicians, people with dementia and family carers on this matter.

“It is important to note that these drugs are not cures and are only suitable for some people who are in the early stages of Alzheimer’s Disease. There will be countless people for whom this drug will not be helpful. We must continue to advocate for and resource non-pharmacological interventions and supports for people with all types of dementia and their families.”

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