Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation Applauds FDA Approval of New PET Tau Scan

The Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation welcomes the news that the FDA has approved Tauvid™, the first radioactive diagnostic agent for PET imaging of tau protein in the brains of patients being evaluated for Alzheimer’s disease. Tauvid PET scan shows the density and distribution of tau tangles, which, along with amyloid plaques, are a primary marker of Alzheimer’s disease.

This is the first PET tau scan approved for use in the United States. PET amyloid scans have been available since Amyvid®, which was developed with funding support from the ADDF and approved in 2012. Together, these PET brain scans will give physicians meaningful information about the presence of both pathologies to help them validate an Alzheimer’s diagnosis in their patients.

The path to finding effective Alzheimer’s treatments, the primary mission of the ADDF, starts with better ways to diagnose patients. “An early and accurate Alzheimer’s diagnosis using biomarkers like these PET scans can influence how healthcare providers, patients and their caregivers approach and plan for present and future care,” said Dr. Howard Fillit, the ADDF’s Founding Executive Director and Chief Science Officer. “Importantly, it can also help identify and enroll the right patients in clinical trials and help track their progress.”

A large national study showed that physicians alter their management of patients with mild cognitive impairment and dementia when PET amyloid scans detect amyloid brain plaques. Similar information about the presence of tau tangles can only further inform their decision-making progress. As such, the ADDF supports all efforts to make approved PET scans widely available to clinicians and their patients.

The ADDF’s Diagnostics Accelerator supports development of additional reliable and affordable biomarker tests for Alzheimer’s. This unique program challenges the research community to develop cutting-edge biomarkers and explore novel diagnostic technologies. Research funded to date focuses on various methods and targets including blood tests in various stages of development, as well as eye scans and digital tools that can join PET scans in our diagnostics arsenal.