Columns The MS Wire - A Column by Ed Tobias MS News That Caught My Eye Last Week: SPMS Transition, NVG-291, PIPE-307, Foralumab MS News That Caught My Eye Last Week: SPMS Transition, NVG-291, PIPE-307, Foralumab by Ed Tobias | March 21, 2022 Share this article: Share article via email Copy article link MS Doctors, Nurses in UK Struggle With Marking Transition to SPMS The issue highlighted in this story isn’t just a problem in the U.K.; it’s a universal MS problem. People with MS often ask how they will know when their illness has transitioned from relapsing to progressive. I respond to that question by asking if it really matters what we call it. I wonder if we’d be better off doing away with MS subgroups. Among healthcare providers in the U.K., considerable variation exists in marking the transition from relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosisĀ to secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS), a study based on interview responses reports. Neurologists and nurses with MS specialties also expressed a reluctance to label patients as having progressed to SPMS due to a lack of available treatments for this MS form, its researchers wrote. Click here or on the headline to read the full story. Recommended Reading February 25, 2022 News by Marisa Wexler, MS #ACTRIMS2022 ā Immune System ‘Reset’ by Stem Cell Transplant *** NervGen Cleared to Enroll 2nd MAD Group in NVG-291 Trial This announcement has generated quite a bit of buzz on the MS News Today Facebook page. The reason? NVG-291 is a small protein designed to boost myelin regeneration ā the holy grail of MS treatments. NervGen hopes to launch this trial by the end of the year. NervGen Pharma has been cleared to enroll a second group of healthy volunteers into the multiple ascending dose (MAD) portion of its Phase 1 clinical trial of NVG-291, a therapeutic candidate for multiple sclerosis. The trialās Safety Review Committee approved the second group after seeing promising safety data from the first MAD group. Click here or on the headline to read the full story. *** PIPE-307, Aiming to Restore Myelin, Found Safe in Phase 1 Trial Here’s another possible myelin restoration treatment that’s being studied. This was only a safety study, however, with healthy people as its subjects. Pipeline Therapeutics hopes to receive U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for clinical testing with people with MS soon. So applause is due, but no wild cheering yet. PIPE-307, an investigational myelin-restoring medication being developed by Pipeline Therapeutics for the treatment of multiple sclerosis, appears to be safe and well-tolerated in healthy adults. The results are from a Phase 1 clinical trial (NCT04725175) that evaluated the safety and tolerability of PIPE-307 in 70 healthy volunteers, ages 18 to 55, at a center in Australia. It also looked at the medicationās pharmacokinetics, or how the medication moves through the body, which was found to be consistent with what was seen in preclinical models. Click here or on the headline to read the full story. *** Foralumab as Nasal Spray Safely, Effectively Treats 1st SPMS Patient Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to use a spray rather than an injection or infusion to treat our MS? Foralumab holds that promise. So far, research has shown that the investigational therapy was well-tolerated and improved the patientās walking ability, finger dexterity, and cognitive function. But let’s be careful here ā these encouraging results are based on just six months of treatment for one person. A second person was enrolled in this trial in January. There’s still a long way to go. Six months of treatment with foralumab, anĀ experimental nasal spray, safely and effectively improved motor and cognitive function while easing immune activation and inflammatory responses in a person with secondary progressive multiple sclerosisĀ (SPMS), Tiziana Life Sciences, the therapyās developer, announced. The patient ā the first with MS to receive the immune-modulating antibody ā was treated at Harvard Medical Schoolās Brigham and Womenās Hospital in Boston under a single-patient expanded access program approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in April. Click here or on the headline to read the full story. Note:Ā Multiple Sclerosis News TodayĀ 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 ofĀ Multiple Sclerosis News TodayĀ or its parent company, BioNews, 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 foralumab, NervGen Pharma, NVG-291, Pipeline Therapeutics, secondary progressive multiple sclerosis, Tiziana Life Sciences Comments Paul Thanks Ed for these articles. All these give patients like me the feeling that everything will be ok. I can not thank you enough for that. Reply Ed Tobias Hi Paul, I'm very glad you think what I write is useful to you. That's why I write. Everything might not always be ok, but enough will be to keep us all going. Ed Reply Ed Tobias Hi Paul, You're very welcome and I hope that all will be ok for you. Ed Reply Nancy Rochelle Hi Ed These are certainly interesting developments. I am wondering if you happen to know if therapies such as the above mentioned NervGen and PIPE-307 trials are targeted to help only the RRMS form of MS? I have SPMS and I've noticed there's quite a large discrepancy between treatments available for Progressive MS and those for RRMS. It can be a little disheartening at times. Thank you Nancy Reply Ed Tobias Hi Nancy, These studies are both researching ways of regenerating myelin. Unlike disease-modifying treatment they're not aimed at reducing exacerbations or slowing disease progression, so my guess is they're not aimed at people with a specific stage of MS. I agree that too many MS treatments seek approval only for RRMS patients, though recently more seem to be approved for a broader spectrum of people. Ed Reply 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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