More time with our best friends? Potential dog lifespan extender advances

Imagine extending the life of your best friend.

Now you might not have to just wish.

Loyal for Dogs, a veterinary medical company, announced its longevity drug for dogs has gained the first step for approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Named LOY-001, the medicine is for dogs seven years old and bigger than 40 pounds. It will be administrated by vets and your friend will have to get it two to four times a year.

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"I'm so proud to announce that Loyal has earned what we believe to be the FDA's first-ever formal acceptance that a drug can be developed and approved to extend lifespan,"  Loyal for Dogs founder Celina Halioua told CBSnews.

She said she hopes it gains complete FDA approval by 2026.

The goal is to eventually help people too.

Halioua told MIT Technology Review that Loyal for Dog hopes their breakthroughs will someday be used to slow human aging as well.

How does LOY-001 work?

According to Loyal for Dog's website, the drug will interact with insulin growth factor-1, which accelerates aging in dogs.

The company said studies show dogs with lower insulin levels enjoyed longer lives and had a higher quality of life.

There's still work to be done, but they're getting there.

"We can't sell the drug yet, you can't go ask your vet about it yet," Halioua told ABC7. "We still have to finish manufacturing and safety, but the 'Does it work?' is kind of historically the most challenging, and most complex, aspect of getting a drug approved."

If approved, it could be a game changer.

While the company didn't give details on how much longer our friends would live, any extension would be worth it.

"From our data, the FDA believes LOY-001 is likely to be effective for large dog lifespan extension in the real world. Once we satisfactorily complete safety and manufacturing sections and other requirements, vets will be able to prescribe LOY-001 to extend the lifespan of large dogs while we complete the confirmatory pivotal lifespan extension study in parallel," the company said.

How much will LOY-001 cost?

Pet parents would pay any price to give their friend a longer life, but Loyal for Dogs said customers shouldn't worry.

Saving your best friend won't mean having to downsize your home.

"This is not going to be a rich person drug, this is not going to be something that puts your family to bankruptcy," Halioua said. "I don't know the final price yet. We're working on finalizing that but think double digits per month. It's not going to be thousands."

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Loyal for Dogs' LOY-001 takes 1st step toward extending a dog's life