Last week, we welcomed our new grandson to the world. Because of Parkinson’s  meds, I was able to hold him with out worrying if I was going to drop him.  What a change from nearly 2 years ago when I was afraid to hold our new born granddaughter,  because of my tremors.  I am sure many of you have experienced similar issues because of your PD.  What follows is an article about drug breakthroughs that may indeed occur “during our lifetimes” and will allow us to hold and enjoy our grandchildren.

Some exciting news about drug breakthoughs.

We keep saying, “not in my lifetime” when it comes to a real breakthough in Parkinson’s treatment.  This article from the American Parkinson Disease Association shows that there are some promising treatments for PD.

FDA Approves Two New Revolutionary Parkinson’s Medications

The American Parkinson Disease Association (APDA) is excited to share that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved two new medications – RYTARY^™ and DUOPA^™ – as treatment for people with Parkinson’s disease. Both of these therapies offer a better way to deliver carbidopa and levodopa medication – and therefore help control symptoms.

This is very exciting and hopeful news for the more than one million people living with Parkinson’s disease. Dr. David G. Standaert, Chairman of APDA’s Scientific Advisory Board says, “These are two very exciting new treatments which offer new opportunities to patients at different stages of their disease and help to better control their symptoms.”

Key highlights about RYTARY^™

RYTARY™ is an extended release formulation of carbidopa and levodopa and is manufactured by Impax Pharmaceuticals. RYTARY^™ is designed to address one of the most significant unmet needs for people living with Parkinson’s disease, which is to reduce the amount of time during the day when their symptoms are not adequately controlled.

People who take carbidopa and levodopa may find that over time that the drug becomes less effective and may experience a worsening of symptoms as the drug ceases to work successfully. As RYTARY^™ is developed to release more slowly over time it will maintain the levodopa levels and will provide greater treatment stability. This treatment will help those in the middle stages of Parkinson’s disease who have problems with the effects of their medication wearing off.

Key highlights about DUOPA^™
Developed by AbbVie, DUOPA^™ is a new approach to the delivery of carbidopa and levodopa for the treatment of the motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. It is administered using a small, portable infusion pump that delivers carbidopa and levodopa directly into the small intestine.

DUOPA™ is the first and only treatment providing 16 continuous hours of carbidopa and levodopa for motor fluctuations in advanced Parkinson’s disease. In a clinical trial, patients treated with DUOPA^™ experienced significantly greater improvement in symptom control than patients treated with oral carbidopa and levodopa immediate release tablets.

This treatment will help those in the advanced stages of Parkinson’s disease who cannot manage symptoms with regular tablets and other oral medications.