The FDA approves the first drug to demonstrably slow Alzheimer's disease; the Biden administration is sending cluster bombs to Ukraine.
Tonight's Sentences was written by Jariel Arvin.
TOP NEWS
A new Alzheimer's treatment is (finally) here
Michael Robinson Chávez/The Washington Post via Getty Images
On Thursday, the Food and Drug Administration granted full approval to lecanemab (brand name Leqembi), the first drug proven to slow cognitive decline for people with early-stage Alzheimer's disease. [Associated Press / Matthew Perrone]
During clinical trials of roughly 1,800 patients, lecanemab slowed the decline in cognitive ability by 27 percent over 18 months. [NBC News / Berkeley Lovelace Jr.]
The approval means Medicare will cover 80 percent of the $26,500 annual costs for traditional patients, but the remaining costs may still be too high for some. [CNN]
The medication will carry the FDA's most urgent warning label because of the risk of potentially life-threatening brain bleeding and swelling for some patients. Patients will have to undergo significant testing before and during treatment. [USA Today / Ken Alltucker]
Some experts are unsure if the effects will be noticeable enough to warrant the risk for the 1.5 million patients in the early stages of Alzheimer's and their families. [New York Times / Pam Belluck]
Despite logistical challenges to administering the drug, FDA approval is a significant step for patients searching for an effective Alzheimer's treatment. [Vox / Dylan Scott]
📍 If you read just one story
Vox's Rebecca Jennings explains why Instagram's Threads won't be able to compete with Twitter in its current form. [Vox / Rebecca Jennings]
Cluster munitions for Ukraine
On Friday, President Joe Biden's administration announced a controversial plan to send Ukraine cluster bombs to boost its counteroffensive against Russia. [Vox / Jen Kirby]
Cluster munitions break into smaller bomblets that can inflict widespread damage — and can accidentally kill civilians in densely populated areas. The move has rasied concerns from human rights groups. [Guardian / Léonie Chao-Fong]
Over 120 countries joined an effective ban on cluster munitions over the long-term threat that unexploded cluster bombs carry for civilians. The US, Ukraine, and Russia have not joined the treaty. [AP]
After initially resisting calls from Ukraine, the US is set to deliver the bombs as part of an $800 million military package that will also supply tanks and other weapons. [BBC / Madeline Halpert]
MISCELLANEOUS
The first five months of the Justice Department's investigations into Donald Trump's alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election and mishandling classified documents cost $5.4 million. [USA Today / Bart Jansen]
The creator of HBO's The Wire and friends of star Michael K. Williams are asking a judge for leniency in sentencing the man who sold the late actor a fatal dose of fentanyl in 2021. [NYT / Benjamin Wiser]
The Republican attorney general of Kansas is suing to prevent the state from allowing transgender people to change their gender on driver's licenses. [AP / John Hanna]
The US added 209,000 jobs in June amid a cooling of the economy, fueling hope that the Federal Reserve could soon stop hiking interest rates. [CNN / Alicia Wallace]
A rancher in the Pacific Northwest scammed two companies out of $244 million. In this episode we first served in February, KUOW's Anna King — host of the Ghost Herd podcast — explains how Cody Easterday went from ranching royalty to prison.
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