Drugmakers hurrying experimental Alzheimer’s drugs into late-stage testing may be undermining their ultimate chance at success.

The halting progress in the race to develop new Alzheimer?s drugs was on display at the International Conference on Alzheimer?s Disease in Chicago this week. Great expectations and a desire for quick results were tempered by the setbacks of some high-profile medicines in the works.

?I think we have seen companies rushing things a bit,? says Rudi Tanzi, a neurologist at Massachusetts General Hospital and co-founder of Prana Biotechnology, which is developing an Alzheimer?s drug, and a consultant to Wyeth and Elan. ?It?s because Alzheimer?s is such a huge medical need. Companies are rushing to get the first drugs out the door.?