Faroes awaits decision on new Alzheimer’s drug

It will be some time before it is known whether the new Alzheimer’s drug donanemab will be approved in the Faroe Islands, according to broadcaster KVF.

The Danish Medicines Council is due to decide whether to recommend donanemab on November 26. The Faroese Council for Special Hospital Medicines will then make its own recommendation.

The Faroese council usually follows decisions by its Danish counterpart and also considers what neighbouring countries decide, Health Minister Eyðdis Hartmann Niclasen said in a response to parliament member Elsebeth Mercedis Gunnleygsdóttur.

Another new Alzheimer’s drug is lecanemab. The European Union approved both lecanemab and donanemab last year, but the Danish Medicines Council recommended against using lecanemab. The other Nordic countries made the same recommendation, citing the risk of side effects and the cost.

If donanemab treatment is offered in the Faroe Islands, it is expected to cost around 15 million kroner a year. The Faroese council will take a decision soon after the Danish Medicines Council rules in November, the minister said.