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Ben McKeen wrote: > > My wife just brought home a news magazine article which bears > the headline "NEW MIRACLE DRUG COULD SAVE MICHAEL J.FOX". It describes > a drug which the author calls Rilutek, says it is FDA approved for ALS > or Lou Gehrigs Disease and it shows great promise in treating PD by > stopping the progress of the disease. Also says that NPF is recruiting > PWP volunteers for testing. I didn't recall seeing anything on this > List about it and I just did a serch of the archives and came up empty. > I don't know what news magazine the article came out of but I will find out. > Has anyone else heard of this drug? Rilutek is the brand name for the drug riluzole, which is not new- it's described in the PDR as offering some help in amyotropic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig disease). Since the neurotransmitter glutamate in excess is a suspected factor in PD, researchers have been looking for a glutamate antagonist whose side effects aren't too nasty. Riluzole is one, and it did help PD symptoms in a trial with monkeys; but it may cause life-threatening liver injury in some people, and therefore users must be monitored by periodic blood tests. Cheers, Joe -- J. R. Bruman (818) 789-3694 3527 Cody Road Sherman Oaks, CA 91403-5013