Medication can be added to the blood in patients who have excessive lead or copper in the brain. The medication binds to the lead or copper in the blood and is then removed from the body when it is eliminated by the kidneys. Fresh medication can then be added that will again "suck" the offending chemical from the brain. The hope in the research approach by the team from the University of Rochester is that Alzheimer's disease can be treated in a similar fashion. They are currently early in the course of attempting to determine if this will happen. Though, all medical breakthroughs begin as phase 1 studies, so there's reason to have hope.