Trump team backs an unproven drug for autism — but does it work?

Donald Trump\'s team is supporting a new drug for the treatment of autism called Leucovorin. This drug, whose safety and efficacy haven\'t been fully proven in large-scale trials, will only be available to a minority of people with autism. According to the head of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the drug could help "hundreds of thousands of children." However, one day after that statement, several autism experts warned that the scientific evidence for this claim is not very strong. This has caused a great deal of anxiety among families, especially since psychologists and doctors say that there is "no magic cure" for autism.

A Vitamin Under Scrutiny

Leucovorin is a form of the vitamin folate, which is one of the B vitamins. The FDA intends to recognize this drug as the first autism treatment approved by them. This is connected to research that suggests folate deficiency in the fluid surrounding the brain and spinal cord can cause autism-related characteristics, such as difficulty with social interaction. This condition is known as cerebral folate deficiency and is caused by faulty antibodies that prevent the delivery of folate to the brain.

No Magic Cure

Despite the grand claims, experts emphasize that Leucovorin is not a panacea. The approval of this drug will only cover individuals who have a folate deficiency issue, which makes up only about 7 to 30% of people with autism. An official from the Autism Science Foundation says that "families on Facebook groups are mistakenly saying that they can get the drug now, but that\'s not what\'s happening." Autism is a complex disorder with many causes, so no single treatment is appropriate for all affected individuals.

Demand for Larger Trials

Some doctors support the drug, such as Dan Rossignol, who says its effect was noticeable in preliminary trials, even with a small number of participants. For example, in one study, some children out of a total of 48 showed a significant improvement in speech. However, Rossignol himself is calling for larger trials on a greater number of children. He says that raising money for these trials has been difficult. Currently, the Trump administration has announced that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) plans to monitor and research the effects of this drug, but the details have not been released.