The MS Wire - A Column by Ed Tobias

Florida, MS biomarker, Lemtrada, nasal spray

Diagnosed with MS at age 32 in 1980, Ed has written the “MS Wire” column for Multiple Sclerosis News Today since August 2016. He presents timely information on MS, blended with personal experiences. Before retiring from full-time work in 2012, Tobias spent more than four decades in broadcast and on-line newsrooms as a manager, reporter, and radio news anchor. Heā€™s won several national broadcast awards. As an MS patient communicator, Ed consults with healthcare and social media companies. Heā€™s the author of ā€œWeā€™re Not Drunk, We Have MS: A tool kit for people living with multiple sclerosis.ā€ Ed and his wife split time between the Washington, D.C. suburbs and Floridaā€™s Gulf Coast.

MS news notes: Vumerity, herpes virus, caregivers

Welcome to ā€œMS News Notes,ā€ a column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Hereā€™s a look at some of whatā€™s been happening: A good report for Vumerity Final results are in from the EVOLVE-MS-1 clinical trial for patients with…

MS news notes: COVID-19, MS blood tests

Welcome to ā€œMS News Notes,ā€ a column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Hereā€™s a look at some of whatā€™s been happening. MS relapses and COVID-19 Since COVID-19 became a concern over three years ago, I’ve read many comments…

What I’m thankful for this Thanksgiving

It wasn’t a good morning. I was dragging my cement-pillar legs around the kitchen and grew frustrated as I lurched from the refrigerator to the counter to feed the cat and the dog. I’d propped my two canes against the counter, but they’d slid to the floor ā€” not once,…

MS news notes: ATA188, biomarkers for MS progression

Welcome to ā€œMS News Notes,ā€ a column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Hereā€™s a look at whatā€™s been happening: ATA188 fails a big test ATA188 is an experimental cell therapy developed by Atara BiotherapeuticsĀ aimed at easing MS…

MS news notes: Stem cell transplant, artificial intelligence

Welcome to ā€œMS News Notes,ā€ a column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Hereā€™s a look at whatā€™s been happening: Lemtrada or stem cell transplant? While the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not yet approved stem cell transplants…

My bladder is doing much better these days, but why?

I slept through the night last night. Recently, I’ve managed to do that on most nights. No 4 a.m. bathroom trips for me! That’s a big deal. There was a time when I’d get up two or even three times during the night for a bladder run. Sleeping seven or…

MS news notes: Dalfampridine, Neural Sleeve, vitamin D

Welcome to ā€œMS News Notes,ā€ a column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Hereā€™s a look at whatā€™s been happening: Dalfampridine side effects The side effects that might occur if you use dalfampridine (sold under the brand name Ampyra)…

MS news notes: EBV, stopping a DMT, 3 treatment reports

Welcome to ā€œMS News Notes,ā€ a column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. This week, the stories cover research presented at the joint meeting of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS) and the…

Musicians living with MS find inspiration in their conditions

“Iā€™m so tiredThe hammerā€™s coming down againIā€™m hardwiredAll the signals cross and double backBroken insideThereā€™s no fixing anythingHow do i explainIā€™m fighting every day to do the simple things?” The lyrics to “Hammer,” written by singer Susie Ulrey and the band Pohgoh,…

MS news notes: Silent progression, ignoring treatments

Welcome to ā€œMS News Notes,ā€ a column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Hereā€™s a look at whatā€™s been happening: ‘Silent’ MS progression Readers of the MS News Today website and Facebook page sometimes wonder why their MS…

People with disabilities should be part of equity in healthcare

You’d think that people with multiple sclerosis (MS) and other disabilities would have easy access to healthcare services. That’s not always so. A small study in the journal Health Affairs that I wrote aboutĀ last year said many physicians ā€œexpressed explicit bias toward people with disabilities and described…

MS news notes: Stem cell transplant, Lemtrada, treating seniors

Welcome to ā€œMS News Notes,ā€ a column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Hereā€™s a look at whatā€™s been happening: Stem cell transplant found to be safe, effective in recent study Autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant (aHSCT) has been…

MS news notes: ANK-700, traveling for treatment, cognition

Welcome to ā€œMS News Notes,ā€ a column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Hereā€™s a look at whatā€™s been happening: An ‘inverse vaccine’ trial to treat MS What’s an “inverse vaccine,” you might ask? While traditional vaccines rev up…

MS news notes: Vaccines, migraines, eye-tracking technology

Welcome to ā€œMS News Notes,ā€ a column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Hereā€™s a look at whatā€™s been happening: Vaccines pose no unusual risk of MS hospitalization, study says It’s time for me to get my seasonal flu shot,…

MS news notes: Bowel symptoms, MS blood test, diet study

Note: This column was updated Sept. 12, 2023, to correct that Octave’s MSDA blood test is currently available and in use throughout the U.S. Welcome to ā€œMS News Notes,ā€ a column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Hereā€™s a look…

Let’s not get overexcited about any mouse study used in research

Mice exaggerate and monkeys lie, some researchers jokingly say. (Or is it the other way around?) Testing on rodents and animals is a typical early step in creating medications, and Multiple Sclerosis News Today publishes news articles about many of these studies. It’s interesting to read what researchers are…

MS news notes: Diagnosing PPMS, NB-4746, Neubie stimulation

Welcome to ā€œMS News Notes,ā€ a column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Hereā€™s a look at whatā€™s been happening: PPMS is difficult to diagnose, report says Most people who have multiple sclerosis start out with a diagnosis of…

MS news notes: Spasticity, early treatment, pediatric onset

Welcome to ā€œMS News Notes,ā€ a column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Hereā€™s a look at whatā€™s been happening: Can noninvasive brain stimulation reduce MS spasticity? For a long time, I’ve had to deal with spasticity, a common…