Columns The MS Wire - A Column by Ed Tobias MS News that Caught My Eye Last Week: Injectable DMTs, Ofatumumab ‘Success Story,’ MS and Night Shift Work, MS Biomarker Study MS News that Caught My Eye Last Week: Injectable DMTs, Ofatumumab ‘Success Story,’ MS and Night Shift Work, MS Biomarker Study by Ed Tobias | October 21, 2019 Share this article: Share article via email Copy article link #ECTRIMS2019 ā Are Injectables Inappropriate for Active Relapsing MS Treatment? Injectable disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) have been around for a long time. I took part in a Phase 3 clinical trial for Avonex (interferon beta-1a) in the mid-1990s. These treatments were the only game in town back then, and those of us who were treated with DMTs considered ourselves lucky. Today, however, more than 15 DMTs are available in most high-income countries, and doctors and patients report that some of them are more effective than the injectables. At the recent ECTRIMS conference, a debate took place about whether injectables are still the best choice for some patients. With more high-efficacy therapies becoming available, is it now inappropriate to prescribe older injectables ā interferon beta and glatiramer acetate ā to people with active relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS)? This question was at the core of what was called a āburning debateā at this yearās European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS) Conference, recently held in Stockholm, in which two speakers discussed the benefits and risks of low- versus high-efficacy disease-modifying treatments. Click here to read the full story. *** #ECTRIMS2019 ā Ofatumumab Part of āMagnificent Success Storyā for MS, ASCLEPIOS Trial Investigator Says I’m a little skeptical when I read superlatives such as “magnificent success” used about any discovery, especially in the pharmaceutical world. But it does appear that this disease-modifying therapy, which is in Phase 3 trials, is worth watching. Like Ocrevus (ocrelizumab), ofatumumab targets B-cells. Unlike Ocrevus and rituximab, however, it’s given as a monthly injection rather than a twice-yearly infusion. Ofatumumab, anĀ investigational B-cell therapy being developed by Novartis, demonstrated encouraging results in lowering relapse rates and active brain lesions in people with relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS) enrolled in the ASCLEPIOS trials. For Stephen L. Hauser, MD, an investigator in the ASCLEPIOS trials, these results represent a decades-long journey to better understand MS and what he calls a āmagnificent success storyā in the overall treatment of the disease. Click here to read the full story. *** Decades of Night Work Tied to Nearly 3 Times Higher MS Risk, Studies in Nurses Suggest I spent many years working in broadcast journalism, a profession that requires someone to be on duty 24/7. Throughout my career, I heard talk about how working the overnight shift, roughly midnight to 8 a.m., took a toll on a person’s health no matter how much sleep they got. This study reports that the problem, at least related to multiple sclerosis (MS), could lie with rotating between day and night shifts over two decades or more. Occasional, or rotating, night shift work, even if done over a decade, does not seem to be directly linked to a higher risk of multiple sclerosis. But working nights for more than 20 years ā and likely beginning such shifts early in a career ā carries an almost three times higher risk of a definitive MS diagnosis, results of a large-scale study in nurses suggest. These findings were reported in āRotating night shift work and risk of multiple sclerosis in the Nursesā Health Studies,ā published in the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine. Click here to read the full story. *** Interleukin-22 May Be Biomarker to Monitor How Well RRMS Patients Respond to Therapy We’re all familiar with the clinical tests and MRIs that doctors use to try to determine how quickly our multiple sclerosis is progressing. This research examined whether a test can be created to track MS progression and assess the effectiveness of treatments by examining a molecule in blood serum. The levels of the inflammatory molecule interleukin-22 (IL-22) may be used as a potential biomarker to evaluate disease severity and the effectiveness of treatments in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), a new study shows. The study, āImpact of interferon Ī²-1b, interferon Ī²-1a and fingolimod therapies on serum interleukins-22, 32Ī± and 34 concentrations in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis,ā was published in the Journal of Neuroimmunology. Click here to read the full story. *** Note: Multiple Sclerosis News Today is strictly a news and information website about the disease. It does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. This content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website. The opinions expressed in this column are not those of Multiple Sclerosis News Today or its parent company, BioNews Services, and are intended to spark discussion about issues pertaining to multiple sclerosis. Print This Page About the Author Ed Tobias People say to write what you know and Ed Tobias knows about MS. He's lived with the illness since 1980, when he was 32 years old. Ed's a retired, award-winning broadcast journalist and his column combines his four decades of MS experiences with news and comments about the latest in the MS community. In addition to writing his column, Ed is one of the patient moderators on the MS News Today Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram sites. Heās also the author of āThe Multiple Sclerosis Toolbox: Hints and Tips for Living with M.S.ā Ed and his wife split their time between the Washington, D.C. suburbs and Floridaās Gulf Coast, trying to follow the sun. Tags biomarker, disease-modifying therapies (DMTs), ocrelizumab, Ocrevus, Ofatumumab Comments Leave a comment Fill in the required fields to post. Your email address will not be published. Your Name Your Email Your Comment Post Comment
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