July 29, 2020 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Canadian MS Working Group Updates Guidelines for Diagnosis, Treatment The Canadian MS Working Group (CMSWG) ā made up of neurologists with the Canadian Network of MS ClinicsĀ ā has updated its recommendations concerning diagnosis and the use of disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) for multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a press release from theĀ MS Society of Canada.
July 9, 2020 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD Disability Builds in Relapsing MS in Ways Not Tied to Relapses, Analysis Finds Disability appears to mostly accumulate in people with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) in a progressive manner ā rather than being due to relapses, a pooled analysis of patients in two Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) clinical trials shows. These findings, indicating that disease progression underlies relapsing MS as well,…
July 8, 2020 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD Switch from Tysabri to Ocrevus Seen as Safe, Effective in RRMS Patients in Small Study Switching to Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) within a relatively short period is a safe and effective option for people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosisĀ (RRMS) who stop treatment withĀ TysabriĀ (natalizumab), a small and retrospective analysis suggests. With a median washout period of six weeks between therapies, the 28 patients in this study…
June 1, 2020 News by InĆŖs Martins, PhD Two-hour Ocrevus Infusion Time Approved for MS Patients in Europe The European Medicines Agency (EMA) approved a shorter infusion time for Ocrevus (ocrelizumab), an approved treatment for people with relapsing or primary progressive multiple sclerosis (MS). The approval follows a positive recommendation from EMA’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP),…
May 6, 2020 News by Marta Figueiredo, PhD COVID-19 Infection Not Severe in PPMS Patient on Ocrevus, Case Report Finds COVID-19 infection in a multiple sclerosis (MS) patient being treated withĀ Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) ā an immunosuppressive therapy ā was not associated with any serious complications, a case study reports. This finding supports current suggestions that immunosuppressive therapies, by dampening immune and inflammatory responses, may help to protect…
May 4, 2020 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News that Caught My Eye Last Week: Diagnosis by Antibody, Ocrevus After 6 Years, Telemedicine, New DMT Pill New Nanosensor May Help to Diagnose MS at Early Stages My neurologist likes to say that “brain is time.” The sooner MS is treated the more time you can buy before the brain begins to deteriorate and MS symptoms appear. Being able to diagnose MS sooner means earlier treatment.
April 29, 2020 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Ocrevus’ Early Use May Lower Need for Walking Aid by 49% Over 6 Years StartingĀ treatment with OcrevusĀ early can lower almost by half the need for a walking aid inĀ peopleĀ with relapsing forms ofĀ multiple sclerosis (MS) over six years, new analyses of Phase 3 trial data that compared immediate initiation with a two-year delay show. A separate analysis also found…
April 27, 2020 Columns by Ed Tobias News that Caught My Eye Last Week: Ocrevus Infusion Time, Monocytes as a Therapy Target, MS and Work Shorter Ocrevus Infusion Time Up for Approval in US and Europe One of the drawbacks to infusion therapies is the time a patient spends in a recliner receiving the medication. For Ocrevus (ocrelizumab), nearly half a day is required for the infusion itself. Add on pre-infusion care and post-infusion…
April 21, 2020 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Shorter Ocrevus Infusion Time Up for Approval in US and Europe The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) have accepted applications from Genentech to shorten the infusion time for Ocrevus, an approved treatment forĀ multiple sclerosis. If approved, the time to administer Ocrevus will be shortened to a two-hour session, instead…
April 14, 2020 News by Marta Figueiredo, PhD Ocrevus Use Still Growing in Europe But Challenges on Horizon, Spherix Reports Prescriptions ofĀ RocheāsĀ OcrevusĀ (ocrelizumab) among multiple sclerosis (MS) patients initiating or switching aĀ disease-modifying therapy (DMT) continue to rise in Europe, according toĀ a surveyĀ conducted byĀ Spherix Global Insights. Ocrevus, an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody administered directly into a vein,Ā was approved in the European UnionĀ to treat active forms…
April 3, 2020 News by Joana Carvalho, PhD Ocrevus Lowers Progression Risk in More Disabled MS Patients, Study Suggests For multiple sclerosis (MS) patients with considerable disability, Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) appears to lower the risk of continued progression in both relapsing and primary progressiveĀ forms of the disease, data from an exploratory and post-hoc analysis of three Phase 3 trials report. These findings were in the study, ā…
March 4, 2020 News by Ana Pena PhD #ACTRIMS2020 – 3 Ways to Treat MS by Altering Gut Microbiome Under Study Modulating the bacteria that reside in the gut by treatingĀ multiple sclerosis (MS) patients with probiotics, fecal transplants, or gut-related microRNAs may help to ease inflammation and disease severity,Ā researchers withĀ Brigham and Women’s Hospital suggest. Howard Weiner, MD, a group leader at the hospital, presented his team’s findings on…
February 17, 2020 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News that Caught My Eye Last Week: Report on Ocrevus Use, Cognitive Decline in MS, Gold Nanocrystals and Remyelination Study Ocrevus Use Rises Among New Starters with RRMS, Loses Ground to Other Therapies in PPMS Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) bolted out of the starting gate after it was approved for use in the U.S. about three years ago. However, though its use by people with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis continues…
February 14, 2020 Columns by John Connor And the Biofilm Goes to … The medical profession must be sick and tired of patients diagnosing themselves via the wonders of the internet. But as a patient who’s sick and tired, you eventually have to. Medicine is full of orthodoxies that are incredibly hard to shake. When you find yourself at the edge of these…
February 14, 2020 News by Ana Pena PhD Ocrevus Use Rises Among New Starters with RRMS, Loses Ground to Other Therapies in PPMS First-line use of Genentech‘s Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) for patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) has remained stable through 2019 compared to 2018, according to the latest Spherix Global Insights‘ report. However, the latest edition of “RealWorld Dynamix: DMT New Starts in Multiple Sclerosis (US),” based…
January 17, 2020 Columns by Ed Tobias Stem Cells Versus DMTs: MS Treatments Go Head to Head People with multiple sclerosis have been waiting for this: A full-scale clinical trial testing the effectiveness of stem cell transplantation as an MS treatment. The trial is being conducted by the U.S. National Institutes of Health, and it’s enrolling people with MSĀ at several centers in the United States and…
January 16, 2020 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Scottish Medicines Consortium Approves Ocrevus for Treating PPMS Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) has been approved in Scotland as a treatment for early, inflammatory primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS). The Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC) has advised that OcrevusĀ can be prescribed by the National Health Service (NHS) forĀ people with PPMS who have had symptoms for less than 15…
December 13, 2019 Columns by John Connor Stop in the Name of Leukocytes I rolled onto the neurology ward of the hospital that has been dealing with my disease from the beginning. The nurses, whom I’ve met innumerable times, opened with their normal jolly, “How are you?” I can never resist, “Well, I have got MS!” It was 8 in the morning. I’d…
November 22, 2019 News by Ana Pena PhD Ocrevus Top Choice of US Neurologists for Active SPMS, But Mayzent and Mavenclad Gaining Interest, Report Says Genentech‘sĀ OcrevusĀ (ocrelizumab) continues to be the most prescribed medication to reduce inflammatory disease in people with active secondary progressive multiple sclerosisĀ (SPMS) amongĀ U.S. neurologists, even though Novartis’Ā MayzentĀ (siponimod) and EMD Serono’sĀ MavencladĀ (cladribine) were approved in March to treat this same MS…
November 14, 2019 Columns by Jennifer (Jenn) Powell Filtering Ads and Choosing What’s Best I remember a time without televised ads promoting medication. We had access to information through our physician or a card catalog. Pharmaceuticals are now a mainstay on our airwaves. And although prevalent, these ads previously had been inapplicable to me. Until now. An ad for Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) aired a…
October 21, 2019 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News that Caught My Eye Last Week: Injectable DMTs, Ofatumumab ‘Success Story,’ MS and Night Shift Work, MS Biomarker Study #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…
October 15, 2019 News by Ana Pena PhD #ECTRIMS2019 – Ofatumumab Part of ‘Magnificent Success Story’ for MS, ASCLEPIOS Trial Investigator Says 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…
October 14, 2019 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News that Caught My Eye Last Week: Mavenclad and Ocrevus Use Rising in EU, Ampyra Patent Appeal Denied, Exercise and MS Pilot Study Mavenclad, Ocrevus Use Rising in EU as Injectables and Tysabri Decline, Spherix Reports I’m not surprised at reports that the use of Mavenclad (cladribine) and Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) is increasing in Europe, or that the use of injectable disease-modifying therapies appears to be declining there. Mavenclad and Ocrevus are approved…
October 11, 2019 News by Ana Pena PhD Mavenclad, Ocrevus Use Rising in EU as Injectables and Tysabri Decline, Spherix Reports Prescriptions of two multiple sclerosisĀ (MS) treatments ā Ā Merck KGaA‘s Mavenclad (cladribine) and Roche‘s Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) ā have been rising in Europe over the past six months, bolstered by greater market access and compassionate use programs, according to a survey of 250 EU neurologists run…
October 7, 2019 Columns by Ed Tobias MS News that Caught My Eye Last Week: Rituximab vs. Ocrevus In this week’s column, I’ve changed the format a little to focus on one subject: rituximab. This is an approved cancer medication that some U.S. neurologists use as an off-label treatment for multiple sclerosis (MS). Rituximab is similar to Ocrevus (ocrelizumab). When the latter disease-modifying therapy (DMT) became available in…
October 4, 2019 Columns by John Connor Saturday Night and Sunday Morning: A Weekend of UTIs For the last few months, urinary tract infections (UTIs) have been the main subject of this column. My current disease-modifying therapy, Ocrevus (ocrelizumab), has had a significant impact on my multiple sclerosis (MS). The only downside is that Ocrevus attacks B-cells in the body, increasing the risk…
October 4, 2019 News by Ana Pena PhD #ECTRIMS2019 – Is Rituximab a Reasonable Option for MS Patients? No, Researcher Says Editorās note: This is the third story in a three-part report examining the question, āIs rituximab a reasonable alternative treatment for MS?ā, which was a topic discussed at this yearās Congress of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS). Here, we take an in-depth look…
October 4, 2019 News by Ana Pena PhD #ECTRIMS2019 – Is Rituximab a Reasonable Option for MS Patients? Yes, Researcher Says Editorās note: This is the second story in a three-part report examining the question, āIs rituximab a reasonable alternative treatment for MS?ā, which was a topic discussed at this yearās Congress of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS). Here, we take an in-depth look…
October 4, 2019 News by Ana Pena PhD #ECTRIMS2019 – Is Rituximab a Reasonable Option for MS Patients? Editorās note: This is the first story in a three-part report examining the question, āIs rituximab a reasonable alternative treatment for MS?ā, which was a topic discussed at this yearās Congress of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS). Here, we provide a synopsis of…
September 19, 2019 News by Ana Pena PhD #ECTRIMS2019 – Ocrevus Living Up to ‘Game-changing’ Moniker, Genentech’s Hideki Garren Says in Interview Two years after the approval of Ocrevus (ocrelizumab), the latest data continue to support the benefits of the so-called “game-changing” therapy in multiple sclerosis (MS), while new insights highlight its neuronal protective effects and safety. Multiple Sclerosis News Today had the opportunity to speak with Hideki Garren,…