Biogen Advances Alzheimer’s Therapy After Strong Trial Data

The Celia study results, presented at an international conference, indicate that the drug maintains efficacy across various dosage regimens over an 18-month period. Researchers tracked progress using standard cognitive benchmarks, including the Clinical Dementia Rating Sum of Boxes, the ADAS-Cog13, and the MMSE. According to Cath Mummery, a professor of clinical neurology at the UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, the magnitude of cognitive benefit observed in the trial represents some of the most compelling evidence to date for a tau-directed treatment.

Biogen originally secured the rights to the therapy through a licensing agreement with Ionis Pharmaceuticals in late 2019. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted the drug fast track designation earlier this year. Despite the positive clinical outlook, Biogen shares fell 7.4% to $193.52 in early trading, though the stock maintains a 10% gain for the year. The company intends to release further findings from its long-term extension study at upcoming scientific venues.