Best Science Medicine Podcast - BS without the BS
Sep 23, 2026 · 28 min · 9 segments
In episode 629, Jamie and James invite Karenn Chan to the podcast for the first time. We go over the evidence for the very important topic of if and when to stop medications for dementia. We’ll give…
Karenn ChanGuestJames McCormackHost
Jamie FalkHostWhich is, again, most people, if you go, I've got a pill for dementia, almost no one's going to go, I guess it only works in one in 10.
And part of the issue is that, and we've done tools on this a lot, about one in 10 don't tolerate this drug.
and it's just nice to know those numbers because if you don't know the numbers as a clinician, you don't know how to assess the effect.
You don't know how to think about it, which is why I think it's really important to that we that we give you guys those numbers and you use them and and especially with now we have some of the numbers about what to what might happen if you start so i think it's really useful now they so that's that's all the that's the evidence that you guys found now there was also some stuff with uh they looked at overall adverse events
And basically what they showed is that there basically is no difference in overall adverse effects, events when you stop it versus when you don't stop it.
Yeah, there's actually like two RCTs with galantamine, and the results were incredibly similar to what the donepezil studies were like.
Which is, again, most people, if you go, I've got a pill for dementia, almost no one's going to go, I guess it only works in one in 10.
And part of the issue is that, and we've done tools on this a lot, about one in 10 don't tolerate this drug.
and it's just nice to know those numbers because if you don't know the numbers as a clinician, you don't know how to assess the effect.
You don't know how to think about it, which is why I think it's really important to that we that we give you guys those numbers and you use them and and especially with now we have some of the numbers about what to what might happen if you start so i think it's really useful now they so that's that's all the that's the evidence that you guys found now there was also some stuff with uh they looked at overall adverse events
And basically what they showed is that there basically is no difference in overall adverse effects, events when you stop it versus when you don't stop it.
Yeah, there's actually like two RCTs with galantamine, and the results were incredibly similar to what the donepezil studies were like.
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