May 9, 2022 News by Lindsey Shapiro, PhD Phase 3 Trial to Assess Benefits of Group Resilience Training Program A Phase 3 trial will test the ability of a group resilience training program, called READY, to promote quality of life and better psychosocial outcomes in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). Involving more than 200 MS patients, the trial will compare the benefits of READY training against those of…
April 15, 2022 Columns by Ed Tobias Upon Reflection, I’m Determined to Seize the Day Do you think about death? I do ā a lot. I mean, like almost every day. Don’t get…
April 11, 2022 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News That Caught My Eye Last Week: Herpes, COVID-19, Exercise, DMT Studies No Link Between Herpes Infection and MS Risk in Genetic Study This is interesting because the Epstein-Barr virus is a member of the herpes family, and recently, a major study indicated a link between Epstein-Barr and MS. Yet, the study reported here concludes there is no link between herpes…
April 11, 2022 News by Marisa Wexler, MS New Bouts of Depression, Anxiety Linked to Pandemic, US Survey Finds Many people with multiple sclerosis (MS) report new bouts of depression and anxiety as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, but factors that often influence such mental health concerns were not associated with anxiety or depression in the patient group Ā surveyed for a recent U.S. study. “We found that…
April 8, 2022 Columns by Ed Tobias Crossing the Lemtrada Finish Line I’m marking a big anniversary this month. It’s been four years since I finished the second round of treatment with Lemtrada (alemtuzumab), my final disease-modifying therapy (DMT). That means that, after about 60 monthly blood draws, I’m finished being stuck. Lemtrada is usually a two-phase series of injections, with…
April 6, 2022 Columns by Beth Ullah The Building Blocks of Becoming a Busy Bee āSerendipity. Look for something, find something else, and realize that what you’ve found is more suited to your needs than what you thought you were looking for.ā ā Lawrence Block When the world was thrown into lockdown at the dawn of COVID-19, I was already an old hand at functioning…
April 4, 2022 News by Margarida Maia, PhD COVID-19 Not Linked to Long-term Worsening of RRMS: Iranian Study COVID-19 does not seem to be linked to increased disability worsening or more relapses in the long term for people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), an Iranian study suggests. The study was relatively small, the researchers noted, indicating that more research is needed in the future to determine the…
April 1, 2022 Columns by John Connor Old Friends, Broken Chairs, UTI Admissions, and Redemption The week started with a bang, albeit with a hint of underlying anxiety. Friends and former work colleagues gathered during the first days of spring to chat in my sun-lathered back garden in South London. COVID-19 lateral flow tests had all been passed. Previously, weād spent years working together on…
March 30, 2022 News by Marisa Wexler, MS MS Society of Canada Grants Will Support 66 Research Projects The MS Society of Canada is providing thousands in funding to 66 research projects that aim to accelerate scientific understand of multiple sclerosis (MS) and to improve care for people with the disease. The society announced the winners of its 2022ā23 Annual Research Competition in four categories…
March 28, 2022 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News That Caught My Eye Last Week: aHSCT, Cannabis, Smell Test, Telemedicine Stem Cell Transplant Gaining Ground as MS Therapy Option This comprehensive look at stem cell transplants by Multiple Sclerosis News Today writer Hawken Miller is one of the best overviews of the possible benefits and dangers and the current status of autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (aHSCT) that…
March 21, 2022 News by Lindsey Shapiro, PhD MS Patients Voice Satisfaction With Telehealth Use During COVID-19 Telehealth services for physical and mental healthcare were used often by people with multiple sclerosis (MS) during the COVID-19 pandemic and most were satisfied or highly satisfied with such care, according to a study based on survey results. “The findings suggest that telehealth services were well liked during the…
March 11, 2022 Columns by John Connor Can I Really Blame MS for Everything I Say? It wasnāt an argument; it was a reality check. I was happy, nay, self-indulgent. Within a day, the olā stand-up show that I produced at Londonās Comedy Store for 30 years had gotten another booking at a countryside marquee just outside the city. I mustnāt disparage, as itās our…
March 10, 2022 News by Marta Figueiredo, PhD MS Trust Survey: UK Nurses Treating ‘Unsustainable’ Numbers of Patients The number of nurses in the U.K. with a specialty in multiple sclerosis (MS) care rose significantlyĀ between 2018 and 2021, but these specialists on average carry a patient caseload that’s 50% higher than recommended, as a pronounced rise in MS cases was also noted, the MS Trust reports.
March 4, 2022 Columns by Jamie Hughes More Than 50 Shades of Gray Spring is rapidly approaching. Itās warming up outside. The trees are starting to bloom. And inside our home, I am once again plotting to refresh the place. Out with old decorations, and in with the new! Declutter that closet! Donate the table and chairs that still look great because you…
February 18, 2022 Columns by Jamie Hughes Making Good Choices When COVID-19 Strikes The past two weeks have been a bit of a blur. Our younger son caught the COVID-19 virus at school, and once we got a positive home test, we went into containment mode. While I took him to get an official test at a local clinic, my husband got everything…
February 16, 2022 News by Lindsey Shapiro, PhD UK MS Society Investing $1.5M in Support of 9 Research Projects The MS SocietyĀ of the U.K. intends to raise over Ā£1.1 million (about $1.5 million) to support nineĀ multiple sclerosis (MS) research projects, marking the return of the grants program it put on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Funding will support research in the…
February 11, 2022 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Bacteria-fighting White Blood Cell ‘Traps’ Tied to T-cell Inflammation Molecular “traps” made by neutrophils, a type of white blood cell, to fight bacteria may contribute to the excessive inflammatory activity of T-helper 17 immune T-cells, which are known to play a role in autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis (MS). Neutrophils are equipped with a number of biochemical tools…
January 31, 2022 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News That Caught My Eye Last Week: COVID-19 Booster, EBV Treatment, Childhood MS Risks, Vitamin D COVID-19 Booster May Benefit Patients on Anti-CD20 Therapy After multiple reports of how Gilenya and anti-CD20 MS medications reduce the efficacy of the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, here’s more evidence that a booster shot may improve that protection. The researchers report “modestly increased levels” of antiāSARS-CoV-2 antibodies after a third…
January 31, 2022 News by Marta Figueiredo, PhD Higher Risk of Long COVID Possible With MS, UK Study Suggests Nearly a third of multiple sclerosis (MS)Ā patients with COVID-19 experience symptoms that last at least one month, according to a review of of more than 550 infected MS patients in the U.K. who did not need to be hospitalized. This study’s rate is higher than that reported for the…
January 28, 2022 Columns by John Connor Having My Own ‘Long Bad Friday’ In truth, my long, bad Friday started on Thursday afternoon at 5 p.m., although it seems wrong in the middle of a black, midwinter night to still call it afternoon. Still, if you live in Alaska, summer nights never even start! (OK, I’ll stop musing about the vagaries of Earthās…
January 28, 2022 Columns by Ed Tobias MS Hiker Laces Up Her Boots for Appalachian Trail Reservations at a base lodge have been made, and a starting date is circled on her calendar. MS hiker April Hester is ready to start up the Appalachian Trail in the eastern U.S. It’s always an uphill hike for April, even when the trail is flat. She was diagnosed with…
January 27, 2022 News by Marta Figueiredo, PhD COVID Booster May Benefit Patients on Anti-CD20 Therapy Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients with weak immune responses to COVID-19 vaccines are more likely to respond successfully to the booster shot if they are receiving an anti-CD20 therapy compared with those on Gilenya (fingolimod), according to a small study in Norway. These early findings suggest that booster shots…
January 25, 2022 News by Margarida Maia, PhD Tevogen to Develop T-cell Therapy That Might Prevent EBV Infection Tevogen Bio is planning to make use of its virus-fighting immune cell technology and turn it against Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), a common virus thought to greatly increase the risk of multiple sclerosis (MS). The technology employs off-the-shelf cytotoxic T-cells ā a type of white blood cell that can…
January 17, 2022 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News That Caught My Eye Last Week: Epstein-Barr Virus, EHP-101, Anti-CD20 Therapies, Gut Bacteria Epstein-Barr Virus May be Leading Cause of MS, Raising Risk by 32 Times Several studies over the past few years have suggested a link between the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and multiple sclerosis (MS), but this one is huge, both in the number of participants and in the length…
January 13, 2022 News by Lindsey Shapiro, PhD MS Type, Anti-CD20 Therapies Tied to Higher COVID-19 Mortality Risk Among people with multiple sclerosis (MS), a progressive disease type and the use of anti-CD20 therapies ā such as ocrelizumab and rituximab ā were associated with an increased risk of death from COVID-19, a new meta-analysis revealed. āWe hope that these findings ā¦ may help neurologists in optimizing…
January 10, 2022 News by Lindsey Shapiro, PhD After Tysabri, Ocrevus Seen as Better Than Gilenya at Preventing Relapse Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) may be more effective than Gilenya (fingolimod) at preventing relapse in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) patients who recently transitioned from Tysabri (natalizumab), according to a new study. Ocrevus is āpotentially a better exit strategy than [Gilenya] after [Tysabri] cessation, with an impressive reduction [in] risk…
January 7, 2022 Columns by John Connor As Omicron Spreads, I’m Keeping My Head Down I’m pretty sure that wherever you are, you’re responding the same as we all are to the ravages of the latest Bond villain, that dastardly omicron variant of the coronavirus! OK, pipe down, Kiwis. The whole world knows the extreme lengths you’ve gone to avoid a massive COVID-19 outbreak. If…
January 7, 2022 Columns by Ed Tobias More Answers About COVID-19 Vaccines and MS A little over a year ago, I wrote about whether people with multiple sclerosis (MS) should get a COVID-19 vaccine. I was anxious to be vaccinated as soon as I could, but I was also concerned about how the vaccines would affect someone with MS. Would the side effects…
January 3, 2022 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News That Caught My Eye Last Week: Cortrophin Gel, Simvastatin, COVID-19 Treatments Cortrophin Gel Now Available in US at AllianceRx Walgreens Prime Cortrophin Gel is similar to Achtar Gel, which was, until the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s recent re-approval of Cortrophin, the only repository corticotropin injection available in the U.S. Cortrophin Gel is a naturally produced cortisol that is expected…
December 28, 2021 News by Marta Figueiredo, PhD Ocrevus, Gilenya May Limit Efficacy of COVID-19 Vaccines: UK Study COVID-19 infection rates after widespread vaccination were significantly higher among multiple sclerosis (MS) patients on Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) or Gilenya (fingolimod) than in the general population, but not among MS patients given other immunosuppressive disease-modifying therapies (DMTs), a data study in England reports. While information on patientsā vaccination…