May 16, 2019 News by Jose Marques Lopes, PhD #AANAM – Gilenya at 0.5 mg Superior to Copaxone at Lowering Relapses, Phase 3 Trial Shows Oral Gilenya (fingolimod) taken daily at a 0.5 mg dose is superior toĀ Copaxone (glatiramer acetate) injections at lowering relapses and disease activity over one year in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), according to results of a Phase 3b trial. The research, āEfficacy and Safety…
May 15, 2019 News by Marisa Wexler, MS #AANAM – Biogen Offers Update on Development Plans for MS Therapies At the 2019 annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology (AAN),Ā Multiple Sclerosis News TodayĀ sat down with Bernd Kieseier, MD, global head of multiple sclerosis at Biogen, to discuss the company’s portfolio, latest data, and therapeutic development plans in the field of multiple sclerosis (MS). Kieseier said…
May 15, 2019 News by Jose Marques Lopes, PhD #AANAM – 2 Trials Aim to Decide Best Early Way of Treating RRMS, Cleveland Clinic Doctor Says Two ongoing clinical trials may help doctors better understand which type of disease-modifying therapy ā those considered highly effective or those with low-to-moderate efficacy used in an escalating treatment approach ā would be best for people in the early stages of Ā relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), according to a Ā …
May 13, 2019 News by Marisa Wexler, MS #AANAM – Ocrevus Effective in RRMS Patients with Poor Responses to Other DMTs, Early Trial Data Suggest Early, one-year data from theĀ Phase 3 CHORDS study show that OcrevusĀ effectively prevents relapses and disease progression inĀ relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) patients who have had poor responses to other disease-modifying therapies. These interim results were presented at the 2019 annual meeting of the American Academy of NeurologyĀ (AAN) in…
May 13, 2019 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD #AANAM – Aubagio at Higher Dose Shows Long-term Efficacy in Variety of Patients, Trial Data Show AubagioĀ taken as 14 milligram (mg) tablet once daily significantly reduces the risk of relapse in people with relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS) over time irrespective of their prior treatment history, a pooled analysis of Phase 2 and Phase 3 trial results show. The findings were presented at the 2019…
May 10, 2019 News by Marisa Wexler, MS #AANAM – Interferon Beta Exposure Does Not Seem to Increase Risk of Pregnancy Complications, Study Suggests Exposure to interferon beta does not seem to increase the risk of complications during pregnancy in women with multiple sclerosis (MS), new research suggests. The data were presented in an oral presentation, “Pregnancy and Infant Outcomes with Interferon Beta: Data from the European Interferon Beta Pregnancy Registry and MS…
May 10, 2019 News by Ana Pena PhD #AANAM – RRMS Patients Switching to Lemtrada Report Greater Satisfaction with Treatment and Improvements in Quality of Life Patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) who switched to infusions with Sanofi Genzymeās Lemtrada (alemtuzumab) report increased satisfaction with treatment and improvements in health-related quality of life, according to…
May 10, 2019 News by Ana Pena PhD #AANAM – Oral Ozanimod Better than Avonex in Lessening Brain Volume Loss in Relapsing MS, Trial Shows Oral treatment with ozanimod (RPC1063), an investigational immunomodulator under development by Celgene, is better at preventing brain volume loss, compared with Avonex (interferon-beta-1a), in adults with relapsing forms of…
May 9, 2019 News by Jose Marques Lopes, PhD #AANAM – Greater Exposure to Ocrevus Means Less Risk of Disability Progression in MS Patients, Study Contends Higher exposure to Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) is associated with greater immune B-cell depletion in the blood, and lessened risk of disability progression in patients with relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS) and primary progressive disease (PPMS), according to new research. The study supporting that finding, āPharmacokinetics, Pharmacodynamics and…
May 9, 2019 News by Jose Marques Lopes, PhD #AANAM – Scoring Tool Helps Identify Patients with RRMS or Transitioning to SPMS, Study Reports A newly developed scoring tool enables better identification of patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) as well as those transitioning or already diagnosed with secondary progressive MSĀ (SPMS). The research about that finding, āValidation of the Scoring Algorithm for a Novel Integrative Secondary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis (SPMS) Screening Tool,ā…
May 9, 2019 News by Jose Marques Lopes, PhD #AANAM – Mayzent Improves Cognitive Processing Speed in SPMS Patients, Trial Results Show Treatment with Mayzent (siponimod) provided sustained improvements and prevented deterioration of cognitive processing speed in patients with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS), regardless of their cognitive function prior to therapy, according to results of a Phase 3 clinical trial. The data were presented at the recent 2019Ā American…
May 8, 2019 News by Marisa Wexler, MS #AANAM – Research Suggests Extended Interval Dosing of Tysabri Can Decrease Risk of PML New data suggests that treatment withĀ TysabriĀ (natalizumab) in an extended interval dosing regimen is associated with a significantly lower risk ofĀ progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathyĀ (PML) in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), compared with the standard interval dosing. The data was presented byĀ Lana Zhovtis Ryerson, MD, on May 7 at the 2019Ā …
May 8, 2019 News by Marisa Wexler, MS #AANAM – Research Suggests Misconceptions About MS Risk in Pregnant Women New research suggests that even though pregnant women with multiple sclerosis (MS) are often viewed as high risk by their physicians, pregnancy Ā does not seem to increase the likelihood of adverse obstetrical outcomes for those patients or their babies. The research was presented at the 2019 Annual Meeting…
May 7, 2019 News by Jose Marques Lopes, PhD #AANAM – Mayzent Lessens Inflammation at Brain Meninges, Prevents Migration of Lymphocytes to Reduce Demyelination, Mouse Study Suggests Treatment with Mayzent (siponomod) may reduce myelin deterioration by lessening the accumulation of immune cells in brain meninges, and preventing the migration of pro-inflammatory lymphocytes into the brain, according to a study in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis (MS). The research, āA Mouse Model of…
May 6, 2019 News by Marisa Wexler, MS #AANAM – IV Therapy May Be More Effective Than Oral Treatment in Younger RRMS Patients, Research Suggests Infusible disease-modifying treatment ā that is, therapies given intravenously ā might have greater benefits for younger people with multiple sclerosis (MS) than oral ones, new research suggests. The research was presented at the ongoing American Academy of Neurology (AAN)’s annual meeting (May 4-10) by Brandi Vollmer,…
May 3, 2019 News by Marisa Wexler, MS #AANAM – Precision Innovative Network and Splice Machine Will Present Predictive Healthcare Application at AAN Meeting A new clinical application prototype that uses machine learning to help physicians predict the best treatment options for patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) will be unveiled at theĀ American Academy of Neurology’s 2019 annual meetingĀ May 4ā10, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The prototype is called PIN Population Data Platform. It has been…
April 15, 2019 News by Jose Marques Lopes, PhD Anne Cross, Neurologist with Pioneering Work into B-cells and MS, Awarded John Dystel Prize This year’sĀ John Dystel Prize for Multiple Sclerosis ResearchĀ is being awarded toĀ Anne H. Cross, a neurologist and MS chair in the department of neuroimmunology atĀ Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, for herĀ research into the role of immune B-cells in multiple sclerosisĀ attacks and new imaging…
April 5, 2019 News by Jose Marques Lopes, PhD #AANAM – Mineral Intake Not Linked to MS Risk, Study Suggests The amount of zinc, iron, and other minerals a person has in his or her diet is not associated with the risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a study. The study, āTotal intake of different minerals and the risk of multiple sclerosis,”Ā was published…
April 4, 2019 News by Jose Marques Lopes, PhD #AANAM – Ibudilast Slows Brain Atrophy in PPMS But Not SPMS Patients, Phase 2b Trial Shows Treatment with oral ibudilast slowsĀ brain shrinkage in patients with primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS), but not in those with secondary progressive MS (SPMS), according to results of a Phase 2b clinical trial. According to the findings, this could be partially due to faster disease progression in untreated…
March 15, 2019 News by Jose Marques Lopes, PhD #AANAM – Ublituximab Safe, Well-tolerated in Extension Study of Phase 2 Trial in Relapsing MS Treatment withĀ ublituximab continues to be safe and well-tolerated by patients with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis, according to an extension study of a Phase 2 trial. According to a press release, Edward Fox, MD, PhD, from Central Texas Neurology Consultants, will give the presentation on May 7 at poster session P3: MS Clinical Trials and Therapeutic Research. Ublituximab is an investigational monoclonal antibody being developed by TG Therapeutics to target the immune B-cell marker protein CD20. This leads to the depletion of B-cells from the blood and central nervous system ā B-cells are activated during MS relapses. According to the company, ublituximab may be superior to current anti-CD20 treatments in MS, enabling both lower doses and shorter infusion times. Final results of the main TG-Therapeutics-sponsored Phase 2 trial were recently presented at the 4thĀ Annual Americas Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ACTRIMS) Forum, held in Dallas, Texas. Data showed that 93% of the 48 patients enrolled (mean age 40 years) were relapse-free after a 48-week treatment with ublituximab. The annualized relapse rate ā the number of relapses per year ā was 0.07. In addition, median B-cell depletion was more than 99% throughout 48 weeks.Ā Moreover, 87% of participants showed no evidence of clinical disease. Magnetic resonance imaging showed a complete elimination of T1 lesions at 24 and 48 weeks 24 in all 46 patients analyzed. Mean T2 lesion volume decreased by 10.6% at 48 weeks, compared with the beginning of the study. T1 lesions refer to areas of active inflammation and disease activity, while T2 lesions are a measure of the total amount of lesions, both old and new. Ublituximab was found to be well-tolerated, and did not induce an severe treatment-related adverse events. The most frequent adverse events were infusion-related reactions. No patient had to discontinue treatment due to an ublituximab-related side effect. At the upcoming AAN meeting, Fox will present data on both this Phase 2 trial andĀ its open-label extension, in which 37 patients from the primary study continued receiving one-hour infusions of 450 mg of ublituximab every 24 weeks for an additional 96 weeks. Safety was monitored throughout the study, and disability assessments using theĀ Expanded Disability Status ScaleĀ were conducted every 48 weeks. As of October 2018, nearly 30% of participants had completed 48 weeks of treatment in the extension study. Results showed that ublituximab continues to be well-tolerated, with no discontinuations due to adverse events. āThe Phase 2 OLE supports that one-hour infusions of [ublituximab] continue to be safe and well tolerated,ā the researchers wrote. Of note, five of the eight study authors are affiliated with TG Therapeutics. The team expects additional patient follow-up data from the study to be available by the time of the AAN presentation. According to the scientists, the results support the ongoing Phase 3 ULTIMATE program, which includes the ULTIMATE 1 and ULTIMATE 2 trials. These studies are comparing the efficacy and safety of 450 mg of ublituximab withĀ AubagioĀ over 96 weeks of treatment in relapsing MS patients.Ā Both trials are led byĀ Lawrence Steinman, MD, atĀ Stanford University. TG Therapeutics expects toĀ have results from these trials as early as mid-2020.
March 12, 2019 News by Jose Marques Lopes, PhD #AANAM ā Risk of MS Relapses Not Increased Right After Giving Birth, Study Suggests Women with multiple sclerosis (MS) do not experience more relapses right after giving birth, as previously believed, according to a preliminary study. The study also revealed that mothers with MS who breastfeed their babies have a lower relapse risk compared with those who do not breastfeed. The data, ā…
March 8, 2019 News by Jose Marques Lopes, PhD #AANAM – Sugar-sweetened Beverages Linked to Higher Disability Level in MS, Study Finds Drinking about 290 calories of sugar-sweetened beverages ā the equivalent of about two cans of non-diet soda ā per day may be associated with a higher level of disability in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), compared to those who seldom consume such beverages, according to a preliminary study. The…