Dr. Leen Kawas is a managing general partner at Propel Bio Partners and a talented entrepreneur, scientist, and biotech executive. She previously served as the CEO of Athira Pharma, where she received a great appreciation for her drug development work. She is also well-versed in Alzheimer’s and acquired this knowledge when looking for the best treatment for her grandmother. In her current role, Dr. Leen assesses emerging bioscience companies that focus on supporting companies to boost their products and achieve their mission.
As Alzheimer’s treatment options emerge, Dr. Leen Kawas has identified various factors that make the candidate’s treatment options problematic. Generally, the lack of objective measurement standards and an outlined disease progression are the main tangling factors. Here are the other three factors that Dr. Kawas has identified:
Varying Patient Cognitive Dropping Progression
According to Dr. Leen Kawas, dementia and cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s disorder and other dementias exhibits various ways. Typically, this varies depending on the cognitive domains used when developing a neuronal network. Moreover, different parts of our brains grow based on our typical activities, environment, and languages. Therefore, this creates a heterogeneous foundation of cognition and advancement.
Obsolete Alzheimer’s Scales
Secondly, Dr. Kawas laments about the scales used in clinics. She says that most of them are old and cognition needs to be tested on a gold standard. Moreover, she suggests that clinics should use advanced technology to understand this disease better.
Challenges in Clinical Operations
Thirdly, Dr. Leen Kawas identifies the challenges faced when testing for cognition. She says that it is highly affected by the environment, and unsuitable conditions can affect the results. Additionally, she emphasizes how environment co-variance when testing for cognition affects the results.
Conclusively, Dr. Leen Kawas has discovered factors that make treating Alzheimer’s problematic. Some are controllable, while others are not. Therefore, medical experts should look for the best procedures for managing the controllable factors to treat this disease.