February 22, 2017 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD New Compound, BIIB074, May Ease Trigeminal Neuralgia Pain with Fewer Side Effects, Study Says Treatment with a compound called BIIB074 shows promise in reducing pain caused by trigeminal neuralgia ā a Ā condition that occasionallyĀ affects multiple sclerosis (MS) patients ā with few side effects, a new clinical trial finds. The Swiss study, āSafety and efficacy of a Nav1.7 selective sodium channel blockerĀ in Titrigeminal neuralgia:…
February 16, 2017 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Researchers Test Medical Cannabis as Treatment for MS-Linked Neuropathic Pain Canadian researchers are testing mice to see if cannabinoid oil products ā a common medical marijuana treatment ā could help alleviate the neuropathic painĀ thatĀ often afflictsĀ patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). The preclinical study, āIdentifying the molecular mechanisms involved in supressing multiple sclerosis induced neuropathic pain following cannabinoid treatment in…
February 15, 2017 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Gilenya Could Help Treat SPMS by Countering Astrocytes, Study Says Gilenya (fingolimod)Ā a multiple sclerosis (MS) drug developed to target the immune system and control inflammation, can also reduce the negative action of astrocytes, further controlling inflammation, says a new study. The article, āSphingosine 1-Phosphate Receptor Modulation Suppresses Pathogenic Astrocyte Activation and Chronic Progressive CNS Inflammation,ā appeared in the…
February 10, 2017 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD People with Chronic Diseases Support Obamacare More Than General Public, Survey Finds PeopleĀ with multiple sclerosis (MS) and other chronic diseases value the Affordable Care Act (ACA, also known as Obamacare) more than the general public, concludesĀ a poll conducted by PatientsLikeMe. These patients are also less inclined to repeal Obamacare, and they are more likely to believe Obamacare needs fewĀ changes to…
February 2, 2017 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Computer-assisted Therapy Found to Benefit MS Patients with Cognitive Difficulties Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients who are showing signs of cognitive impairment mayĀ benefit from computer-assisted cognitive rehabilitation programs, according to a new study. Difficulties with short-term memory, or withĀ processing informationĀ and concentrating, are believed toĀ affect 40% to 65% of MS patients.Ā Studies have suggested that cognitive rehabilitation may help, and thatĀ computer-assisted therapy used…
January 27, 2017 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Tiny Molecules in Blood Could Be Biomarkers of MS Progression, Study Says MicroRNAs in the blood could serve as biomarkers to monitor the progression of multiple sclerosis (MS), as well as help identify which mechanisms are at play in each patient, such as inflammation and tissue damage, according to new research. The findings were reported in the study, āAssociation Between Serum…
January 24, 2017 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD 2 Cases of Brain Inflammation Raise Questions of Lemtrada Safety, But Link Uncertain Two multiple sclerosis (MS) patients developed severe brain inflammation after being treatedĀ with Lemtrada (alemtuzumab), researchers report, raising questions about the therapy. A definite link between the lesions and the treatment, however, was not established. The patients’Ā symptomsĀ were successfully controlled with a blood transfusion and treatment with rituximab (brand name Rituxan,…
January 10, 2017 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Magnetic Stimulation of the Brain May Aid Working Memory in MS Patients Repeated magnetic stimulation of the brain may help to rebuild the brain’s network in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), leading to improved working memory, researchers reported. But more studies are necessary to confirm the procedure’s safety and efficacy as a treatment for MS. Results were published in a study titled…
January 5, 2017 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD CHANGE-MS Phase 2 Study Fully Enrolled Early, Results Due in Fall GeNeuro recently announced that it has finished enrolling multiple sclerosis (MS) patients in the CHANGE-MS Phase 2b Ā studyĀ ā several months ahead of schedule.Ā The company nowĀ expects to reportĀ topline results in mid- to late autumn rather than at year’s end. āCompleting enrollment in CHANGE-MS several months sooner than previously anticipated…
January 4, 2017 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Survey Assesses How Health Professionals Treat Other Health Conditions in MS Patients Healthcare providers frequently assess multiple sclerosis (MS) patients for the development of other health conditions, such as depression, anxiety, pain and sleep disturbance, according to results of a survey-study. The study also includes information about how health professionals treat and counsel MS patients diagnosed with these conditions. The study, ā…
January 4, 2017 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Top 10 Multiple Sclerosis Articles of 2016 A number ofĀ important discoveries, therapeutic developments, and events related to multiple sclerosis (MS) were reported dailyĀ by Multiple Sclerosis News Today throughout 2016. Now that the year is over, it is time to briefly review the articles that appealed most toĀ ourĀ readers. Here are the top 10 most-read articles of 2016, with…
January 3, 2017 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Inactivity and Poor Diet Are Common Risk Factors Among MS Patients, Study Says Lack of physical activity and a poor diet may be the most common risk factors for poor health and survival in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a study. The research, āIndividual And Co-Occurring SNAP Risk Factors,ā was published in theĀ International Journal of MS Care. The development…
December 21, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD FDA Extends Review of Ocrevus as Potential Treatment for Both Forms of MS Until March The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently extended until the end of March its review of the Biologics License Application (BLA) forĀ Ocrevus (ocrelizumab). The application was submitted by Roche, requesting FDA approval forĀ Ocrevus as a treatment for patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) and ā for a first…
December 19, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Antibodies to Block MMP Proteins, Faulty in MS and Cancers, Created Using Camels as Inspiration Researchers, using camels as an inspiration, have finally developed antibodies against a group of proteins known as metalloproteinases (MMPs), which are involved in the pathology of diseases that include multiple sclerosis (MS) and cancer. Results on this work, long a goal of scientists, were published in the journal PNAS,Ā under…
December 15, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Brain Atrophy inĀ Secondary Progressive MS Linked in Study to High Levels ofĀ Free Hemoglobin inĀ Blood Hemoglobin leaking from injured red blood cells may be associated with brain atrophyĀ in secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS), according to researchers at the Imperial College London, U.K. The study, āFree Serum Haemoglobin Is Associated With Brain Atrophy In Secondary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis,ā was published in the journal Wellcome…
December 14, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Gadolinium, an MRI Contrast Agent That Accumulates in Brain, May Contribute to MS Certain contrast agents used during magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) may accumulate in specific brain areas and contribute to disease duration and severity in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a new study published in the Multiple Sclerosis Journal. The study, “Gadopentetate But Not Gadobutrol Accumulates In The…
December 8, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD MS Patients in Clinical Trial of GNbAC1 May Continue with Therapy in Extension Study Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients now taking part in a Phase 2b clinical trial testingĀ the efficacy and safety of theĀ antibody GNbAC1Ā will be invited to continue withĀ treatment for two more years under a planned extension study, the biopharmaceutical companiesĀ GeNeuroĀ andĀ ServierĀ recently announced. Several MS therapies rely on the capacity of antibodies to…
December 5, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Low Vitamin D Levels at Birth May Influence MS Risk in Adults, Study Suggests The risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS) later in life may be higher for babies born with low levels of vitamin D, according to a new study in the journal Neurology. The study, āNeonatal Vitamin D Status And Risk Of Multiple Sclerosis – A Population-Based Case-Control Study,ā was…
December 2, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Fat Bubbles and Ultrasound May Offer Way of Getting MS Therapies Directly to Brain A new ways ofĀ delivering drug therapies directly to the brain, overcoming the limitation imposed by the blood-brain barrier (a permeable barrier that protects the brain), has been discovered. The technique ā which makes use of lipid bubbles and ultrasound ā may pave the way for new treatments against neurological disorders,…
November 30, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD New Pool of Neural Stem Cells Found in Brain Meninges Could Lead to New Therapies for MS, Other Diseases Researchers have found neural stem cells (immature cells that can become neurons) in the meninges of the brain, a three-layer structure that protects the nervous system, according to results of a new study. The discovery of this pool of stem cells in the adult brain opens new possibilities for the…
November 29, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD NIH Grant to Support Research into Role of Copper in Demyelination The National Institutes of Health (NIH) awarded a $45,000 grant to a team of investigators, led by Tia Walker, PhD, atĀ Indiana University Northwest, to supportĀ aĀ research project into the role of copper in multiple sclerosis (MS). The award is a first for IU Northwest, and will allow the team to…
November 28, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Palliative Care Helps Improve Life Quality, Ease Pain of Anyone with Serious Illness Palliative care helps to ease the symptoms ofĀ serious illnesses, providing peopleĀ with cancer and thoseĀ withĀ otherĀ life-altering diseases, likeĀ multiple sclerosis (MS) or cystic fibrosis,Ā a better quality of life, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). In the study, āAssociation Between Palliative Care And Patient…
November 16, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Growing Approval of Cannabis Use in US Expands a Major Market, But Tensions Evident Voters in fourĀ U.S. states onĀ Nov. 8 chose to legalize the recreational use of marijuana, and those in three other states approved the medicinal use ofĀ cannabis ā all gains for pharmaceutical and other companies designing cannabis-based therapies for people with long-term chronic ills whose symptoms might be helped with these…
November 14, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Effectiveness and Safety of DMDs Top Patient Concerns with These Therapies, Survey Says In general, patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) choose their disease-modifying drug (DMD) treatment based on considerations of effectiveness and potential sideĀ effects. But the weight they assign to these considerations can differ widely, making it important they are part of treatment decisions, especially regarding DMDs. TheseĀ findingsĀ are in the report,Ā āIdentification and…
November 11, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Ampyra/Fampyra for MS Patients ‘Not Recommended’ by NHS Scotland Despite recent studies showing that treatment with Ampyra (Fampyra in Europe; fampridine) improves both walking speed and ability, and offers psychological benefits to patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), the Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC)Ā recently decided to not recommend the drug for use on the National Health Service (NHS) in Scotland.
November 7, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Immune System May Harbor Natural Way of Fighting MS, Other Autoimmune Diseases A variant in theĀ TYK2Ā gene, which encodes an immune system protein, may work to protect people fromĀ autoimmune disorders, including multiple sclerosis (MS), without overly depressing the body’s ability to fight opportunistic infections, researchers at theĀ University of Oxford report. Their study, āResolving TYK2 Locus Genotype-To-Phenotype Differences In Autoimmunity,ā was published…
November 2, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Ampyra Helps MS Patients Not Only Walk Better, But Feel Better Too, Study Reports Results from a Phase 2 clinical trial showed that treatment with Ampyra (prolonged-release fampridine) brought bothĀ physical and psychological benefits to patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). These findings,Ā fromĀ the MOBILE study (NCT01597297), were published under the title, āProlonged-Release Fampridine Treatment Improved Subject-Reported Impact Of Multiple Sclerosis: Item-Level Analysis Of The…
November 1, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD MS Does Not Raise a Women’s Risk of Breast Cancer, Study Concludes Multiple sclerosis (MS), especially in premenopausal women,Ā does Ā not seem to be associated with breast cancer, as suggested in previous studies, researchers reported. And, they argue,Ā theĀ higher incidences of this cancer in postmenopausal women with MS may be due more toĀ surveillance bias than true risk. These findings were detailedĀ in the study, ā…
October 28, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Relapses in MS Patients Using Gilenya May Be Result of Changes Within T-Cells, Study Reports Changes in the composition of certain immune system cells may be associated with relapses in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients being treated with Gilenya (fingolimod), according toĀ a study published in the journal Scientific Reports. The study, āAltered T Cell Phenotypes Associated With Clinical Relapse Of Multiple Sclerosis Patients Receiving…
October 21, 2016 News by Joana Fernandes, PhD Umbilical Cord Stem Cells Work to Restore Immune System Balance in Early Study DamagingĀ immune system defects seenĀ in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) can be repaired using a simple stem cell approach, according to a new study by researchers in China and the U.S. The study, āUmbilical Cord-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells Reversed The Suppressive Deficiency Of T Regulatory Cells From Peripheral Blood Of…