On Thursday, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Cobenfy, “the first drug to treat people with schizophrenia,” their website states:
Most schizophrenia medications, commonly known as antipsychotics, work by changing levels of dopamine, a brain chemical that affects mood, motivation, and thinking [according to Jelena Kunovac, MD, board-certified psychiatrist and assistant professor at University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Department of Psychiatry].
Cobenfy takes a different approach by tweaking acetylcholine, another brain chemical that helps memory, learning and attention, Kunovac said. By targeting acetylcholine instead of dopamine, Cobenfy may reduce the symptoms of schizophrenia while avoiding common side effects such as weight gain, drowsiness and movement disorders, clinical trials report. These side effects often become so severe and unpleasant that in some studies they cause patients to stop treatment within 18 months of starting it.
In clinical trials, only 6% of patients stopped taking Cobenfy because of side effects, Dr. Samit Hirawat, Chief Medical Officer at Bristol Myers Squibb. "This is a significant improvement over the 20-30% we were seeing with older antipsychotic drugs," he added…
Schizophrenia is a mental disorder that affects about 24 million people worldwide, or about one in 300 people, according to the World Health Organization.
