Ed Tobias is a retired broadcast journalist. Most of his 40+ year career was spent as a manager with the Associated Press in Washington, DC. Tobias was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 1980 but he continued to work, full-time, meeting interesting people and traveling to interesting places, until retiring at the end of 2012.
In his weekly column The MS Wire, Ed covers a wide range of topics related to the disease, seeking to bring to light patient perspectives on the latest science, research and disease management news, as well as connecting with fellow MS patients about their own personal experiences in coping with the disease.
I’ve been using a Bioness L300 for just over five years to counter my foot drop. Without the L300 strapped to my left leg, it’s difficult for me to ... Read more
IQuity Taking Orders for RNA-based Blood Test That Can Detect MS Early with 90% Accuracy Can it be that there’s now a blood test that can help diagnose MS? ... Read more
Have you heard of a healthcare “reform” proposal in the U.S. Senate called “Graham-Cassidy?” If not, take heed because Graham-Cassidy is a last-ditch effort by Republicans on Capitol Hill, ... Read more
This is a story about sports. It’s not really about MS, it’s about playing football. But, then again, it is about MS. Stick with me and you’ll see. The ... Read more
Probiotics Consumption May Improve Certain Disease Parameters in MS Patients, Study Suggests Probiotics (bacteria that help move food through your gut) have been used for years to help treat stomach ... Read more
Back in May, when I updated everyone about my Lemtrada treatment at six months post-infusion, I began with a question my wife asked: “Do you think you’re walking better?” ... Read more
Older Women with MS Age Better Than Their Male Counterparts, Canadian Survey Finds I have to say that, as a 69 year old man with MS, this report is ... Read more
Am I having an MS relapse? I saw that question asked the other day on one of the social sites I follow. At first, I thought, “Gee, doesn’t everyone ... Read more
You’ve just “biked for MS” or your friends have just “walked for MS” and they’ve collected a lot of pledges. Maybe you sent out letters to your friends asking ... Read more
Horseback Riding Plus Standard Care Can Help MS Patients Improve Balance, Other Symptoms Absolutely, it can. I don’t need to read this study to know that because I’ve been ... Read more
I’ve just added an app to my iPhone that’s designed to track how I’m doing day-to-day with my MS. Not only can the data it collects be useful to ... Read more
MS drug manufacturers are in the sights of two members of Congress The companies are Bayer, Biogen, EMD Serono, Novartis, Sanofi Genzyme, Teva, and Roche. U.S. Reps. Elijah Cummings and Peter ... Read more
Older Immunosuppressants May Increase MS Patients’ Cancer Risk, Study Reports We’re talking about some pretty harsh immunosuppressant drugs here: azathioprine, mitoxantrone, and possibly cyclophosphamide. Unlike newer drugs, targeted to ... Read more
The state where I live has legalized medical marijuana (MMJ) and it’s getting ready to open state-licensed marijuana dispensaries. So, I’ve been thinking about using MMJ to treat some ... Read more
I was surprised to see that a study of a potential MS drug labeled MD1003 is still accepting participants. It’s a study that I’d love to take part in, ... Read more
University of California at San Francisco Recruiting MS Patients for Gut Bacteria Study Last year, a Harvard study reported significant differences between bacteria that MS patients have in their ... Read more
Insurance companies want people to use generics, rather than the more expensive brand-name drugs, right? Maybe not. Because, at least in some cases, they’re doing just the opposite. Some ... Read more
Reading some social media posts the other day, I found myself humming a line from a late 1960s Arlo Guthrie song: “I don’t want a pickle. Just want to ... Read more
Resistance Training Can Slow MS Patients’ Brain Shrinkage, Clinical Trial Indicates Over the years, studies have shown the benefits of various types of exercise in improving MS symptoms. But ... Read more
I regularly see comments on various social media sites from MS patients who have traveled, or who plan to travel, outside the U.S. to be treated with stem cells. ... Read more
What does your neurologist consider when he or she is deciding how best to treat your multiple sclerosis? A recent report from Spherix Global Insights, a business intelligence and ... Read more
In case you missed them, here are some news stories that appeared in MS News Today that caught my eye over the past week: Q Therapeutics Approved to Start Trial ... Read more
Ocvevus (ocrelizumab) is off to a running start, Tecfidera (dimethyl fumarate) leads the pills and the four injectable multiple sclerosis drugs are being used by fewer MS patients. But ... Read more
“Are you doing ok?” It’s one of those questions we all get. And it’s one that most of us don’t like to answer. How do you respond when someone ... Read more
In case you missed them, here are some news stories that appeared in MS News Today that caught my eye over the past week: Ocrevus Is Popular Among Neurologists, but ... Read more
About two years ago, a report by the European Multiple Sclerosis Platform stated that only 21% of MS patients in the United Kingdom were receiving any kind of disease-modifying ... Read more
Biogen is a big pharmaceutical company that produces a half-dozen MS drugs. Among them are Tysabri, Avonex and Tecfidera. And Biogen is doing all it can to protect its ... Read more
In case you missed them, here are some news stories that appeared in MS News Today that caught my eye over the past week. Experts Call for Tighter Regulation of ... Read more
Donna Edwards has multiple sclerosis. Edwards is currently unemployed. But a year ago she had a well-paying job with excellent medical benefits. Edwards was a member of the U.S. ... Read more
About a year ago, I first learned about something called an Ogo. It was just in the development phase then, but it was the neatest thing I’d ever seen ... Read more
In case you missed them, here are some news stories that appeared in MS News Today that caught my eye over the past week. Younger MS Patients Who Are Hospitalized ... Read more
How cool is this? Though it’s not yet related to multiple sclerosis, researchers are developing a Band-Aid-size patch that can inoculate someone with the flu vaccine. The patch is made ... Read more
It’s been a little over six months since I completed Round 1 of my Lemtrada infusions, so it’s time again to ask myself, “How am I doing?” The answer: ... Read more
During a routine exam with my neurologist recently, I asked her a question I’d never thought to ask before: “Why do you order regular MRIs of my brain, but ... Read more
In case you missed them, here are some news stories that appeared in MS News Today that caught my eye over the past week. **** Harvard Study Finds No Link ... Read more
Several months ago, I wrote a column about Andrew Barclay. Barclay died in an assisted suicide in December. He’d had multiple sclerosis for many years. Colin Campbell is a ... Read more
Once again, over the past couple of weeks, we’ve been blasted with headlines trumpeting a new MS discovery. Last month there were headlines about an inexpensive acne drug that ... Read more
In case you missed them, here are some news stories that appeared in MS News Today that caught my eye over the past week. **** Air Pollution May Trigger Relapses ... Read more
