News

The National Multiple Sclerosis Society and a dozen other advocacy groups have banded together to support the Air Carrier Access Amendments Act of 2017, a bill seeking to strengthen the rights of airline passengers and close service gaps often faced by patients with disabilities, including those with multiple sclerosis (MS).

The Maccabees rock band will play an exclusive gig in London to raise funds for the United Kingdom’s MS Society, supporting the organization’s mission of trying to end multiple sclerosis. A key reason for the concert is the group’s passion about the disease. Band members Felix and Hugo White…

Researchers at The Salk Institute have developed a way to grow vital brain cells called astrocytes from stem cells, a potential breakthrough for basic and clinical research into several diseases, including multiple sclerosis (MS). The study “Differentiation of Inflammation-responsive Astrocytes from Glial Progenitors Generated from Human Induced Pluripotent…

The British fundraising group The October Club and The MS Trust, a U.K. multiple sclerosis research and support organization, have announced an ambitious plan to potentially help thousands of advanced MS patients in need of services. Composed of people working in the financial equity industry in London, The October Club raises money for a different charity each year through…

A high daily dose of simvastatin improves multiple sclerosis patients’ cognitive function, according to a new analysis of Phase 2 clinical trial results. The British team that did the research will start a study soon on whether simvastatin, which goes by the brand name Zocor and other labels, can also slow…

Virtual reality (VR) technology is most commonly associated with gaming and entertainment, but it’s expanding into a variety of clinical and healthcare applications. The Ontario-based biopharmaceutical firm EMD Serono, Canada, is now using VR as an informational and educational tool to provide a more profound understanding of what living with multiple sclerosis…

Already an approved treatment for relapsing and primary progressive multiple sclerosis (MS), Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) is still undergoing scrutiny in several clinical trials. Most focus on the drug’s effects in specific patient groups, but one study aims to advance understanding of how Ocrevus works to harness disease. To do so, the open-label Phase 3…

The MS Minority Research Engagement Partnership Network is calling for all multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, ages 21 and older, to respond to a 15-minute online survey. Investigators are hoping to better understand how people with MS from different ethnic backgrounds and races view medical research, so as to engage them in…

Ocrevus (ocrelizumab), a recently approved therapy for relapsing and primary progressive multiple sclerosis (MS), is now on the U.S. market, but research into its use is far from over. Several clinical trials, sponsored by Ocrevus’ developer Genentech or its parent company Roche, are looking at various aspects of the treatment. Multiple Sclerosis…

How multiple sclerosis affects the “social brain,” which governs the ability to understand how others think and feel — a skill called social cognition — is linked to specific types of brain damage that occur in MS: both lesions and microscopic changes taking place in the brain’s white matter, a research team…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved a supplemental biologics license application for two Bayer products that help multiple sclerosis patients keep track of their injections of Betaseron (interferon beta-1b). The products are the myBETAapp and the Betaconnect Navigator software. A biologics license application is a request for permission to market…

Researchers at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center (CCHMC) have developed a new experimental method to specifically target unwanted activation of the immune system without the toxicity of current immunoregulatory drugs. According to the study “Manipulating DNA damage-response signaling for the treatment of immune-mediated diseases,” published in the journal …

The recent annual meeting of the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers (CMSC) brought researchers and healthcare professionals to New Orleans to discuss advances — and obstacles to advances — in multiple sclerosis (MS) research. Clinical trials, preclinical studies, basic research, and health interventions were among the May meeting’s focus. Multiple Sclerosis News…

A common acne medicine called minocycline can reduce the rate of multiple sclerosis progression in patients who are at early stages of the disease, according to a Phase 3 clinical trial. The finding was from the MinoCIS trial (NCT00666887) of minocycline, which goes by the brand name Mynocan and other…

To honor World MS Day, May 31, EMD Serono launched a multiple sclerosis care partner survey in collaboration with the International Alliance of Carer Organizations (IACO). The new survey comes after the initial results from a Merck study showed that the highest number of MS care partners are aged 18-34, and that…

Mallinckrodt has enrolled its first relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS) patient into a Phase 4 clinical trial (NCT03126760) with H.P. Acthar Gel (Repository Corticotropin Injection) to see if the therapy can help treat relapse symptoms in patients who did not respond to high-dose steroids. If successful, the trial might resolve…

Today is World MS Day, and people around the world are sharing tips for living with multiple sclerosis (MS) by using the hashtag #LifewithMS on social media. The MS International Federation started World MS Day in 2009. Events and campaigns take place throughout May to encourage the global MS community to…

Taking Lemtrada (alemtuzumab) for two years inhibited magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) disease activity in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) for more than six years, the CARE-MS I clinical trial extension study found. Researchers presented their study, “Durable Efficacy of Alemtuzumab on MRI Disease Activity Over 6 Years in Treatment-Naive RRMS Patients With…

Most people who care for multiple sclerosis (MS) patients are happy to be caregivers, but they admit that their own emotional and physical health — as well as their financial security — suffer as a result. That’s according to the online vsMS Survey, supported by Sanofi Genzyme, which assesses the physical…

Young multiple sclerosis (MS) patients who engage in physical activity can relieve symptoms of depression, concludes a Canadian study supported by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Researchers presented their study, “Longitudinal Relationships Between Moderate and Vigorous Physical Activity, Fatigue, and Depression in Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis,” at the 2017 Annual Meeting of the…

Multiple sclerosis patients who benefited from Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) in two Phase 3 clinical trials continued to benefit when they extended their treatment, researchers reported. In fact, their annual relapse rates have fallen even further during the extension study than during the trials. The study, “Preliminary Results of the OPERA I and…

Long-term treatment for up to 12o weeks, with the investigational drug Ozanimod (RPC-1063), found to be effective and safe in patients with relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS) who participated in the RADIANCE clinical trial. Celgene, Ozanimod’s developer, presented the study, “Efficacy and Safety of Ozanimod in the Blinded Extension (120…

Multiple sclerosis patients who start Rituxan (rituximab) treatment are three times more likely to have unchanged or improved brain-scan readings than worse ones, according to a study. Holy Name Medical Center researchers presented the findings at the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers annual meeting in New Orleans, May 24-27. The presentation…

Older patients with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS) as well as older relapsing patients whose MS has been inactive after five years may safely discontinue their treatments, Canadian researchers at Vancouver’s University of British Columbia argue. Their Sanofi Genzyme-sponsored study, “When Should Disease-Modifying Treatments Be Discontinued in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis: An…

Cladribine tablets reduced relapsing multiple sclerosis patients’ annual relapse rate by 55 to 57 percent, depending on the dose, according to clinical trials. EMD Serono, a unit of Cladribine’s developer, Merck, presented the trial results at the 31st annual meeting of the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers in New Orleans,…

Long-term therapy with Tysabri (natalizumab) significantly improved the mental state of people with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS), according to results of a Biogen-supported study with patients taking the drug for almost two years. Biogen presented the study, “The Impact of Natalizumab on Health-Related Quality of Life in Patients with Secondary Progressive…

Patients must help develop new outcome measures of multiple sclerosis (MS), since they and healthcare providers may have differing perceptions of how crucial various measures are, a new study argues. Researchers from the Multiple Sclerosis Center of Atlanta shared this insight today at the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers (CMSC) 2017 Annual…

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) who feel stigmatized because of their condition are more likely to have depression,  research presented at the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers Annual Meeting showed. The Pennsylvania State University research team said the impact of the stigma can be eased by lots of social support, a sense…

Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients who experienced a relapse between their first and second rounds of Lemtrada (alemtuzumab) had good treatment outcomes over the long run, according to a Phase 3 clinical trial. Those who relapsed after their first round ended up with annual relapse rates similar to those who didn’t…

The use of multiple sclerosis (MS) mobile apps by patients and their clinicians encourages shared decision-making and helps patients improve their outcomes, finds a study presented at the 2017 Annual Meeting of the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers (CMSC), taking place May 24-27 in New Orleans. The study, “Shared Decision Making: Connecting…