Eli Lilly Alzheimer’s Drug Fails to Prevent Disease in Trial

An experimental Eli Lilly & Co. drug failed to prevent cognitive decline in people at risk for Alzheimer’s disease in a closely watched drug trial backed by the company and the US government.

The drug, solanezumab, “did not slow the progression of cognitive decline” in a trial of more than 1,100 people, Eli Lilly said in a statement Wednesday. The participants were between 65 and 85 and were at risk of the devastating brain disorder because they had high levels of a toxic protein called amyloid in their brains.

While expectations for solanezumab were low because it failed in earlier ...