Machine learning — using computer algorithms — can be used to identify people with primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS) who are more likely to respond to treatment, a new study shows. The ability to predict treatment response could allow clinical trials to be designed more efficiently, researchers said. Jean-Pierre…

Editor’s note: The Multiple Sclerosis News Today team is providing in-depth coverage of the 2021 Virtual AAN Annual Meeting, April 17–22. Go here to read the latest stories from the conference. Treating multiple sclerosis (MS) in its earlier stages with Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) can substantially lower disease activity and lessen damage…

Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) treatment may delay the need for a wheelchair by seven years in patients with primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS), a study reports. This delay, drawn from clinical trial data on treatment- versus placebo-group patients and supported by real-world findings, likely translates to long-term benefits for PPMS patients,…

Starting treatment with Ocrevus early can lower almost by half the need for a walking aid in people with relapsing forms of 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…

For multiple sclerosis (MS) patients with considerable disability, Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) appears to lower the risk of continued progression in both relapsing and primary progressive forms of the disease, data from an exploratory and post-hoc analysis of three Phase 3 trials report. These findings were in the study, “…

Early and continuous treatment with Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) leads to a greater and more durable slowing of disability progression — seen for up to 6.5 years — in people with primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS), according to long-term data on its use in PPMS patients in a Phase 3…

Treatment for more than six years with Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) is linked to lower levels of blood antibodies among people with primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS) and relapsing MS, but rates of serious infections also remain low, an analysis of data from three Phase 3 trials show. Dropping below a certain…

Treating primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS) patients with Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) can help to preserve strength and function in their hands and the arms, analysis of data from a Phase 3 trial found. The research, “Ocrelizumab reduces progression of upper extremity impairment in patients with primary progressive…

Treatment with Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) over five years lessened upper limb disability progression in primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS) patients, reduced relapses and brain disease activity in patients with relapsing MS, and helped achieve no evidence of disease progression (NEDA) in a greater proportion of African-descent patients, compared to treatment…

Treating primary progressive multiple sclerosis patients with Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) led to a three-fold increase in the proportion of those showing no evidence of disease progression and no signs of inflammatory disease activity over more than two years of treatment, results of a Phase 3 trial show, and support new measures that might better capture disability in PPMS patients. The research, “Evaluation of No Evidence of Progression or Active Disease (NEPAD) in Patients With Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis in the ORATORIO Trial,” was published in the journal Annals of Neurology. Measuring disease progression in clinical trials and clinical practice requires reliable and comprehensible measures. Although widely used, the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS, range 0-10) cannot fully capture changes in walking speed and hand or arm function, which are key determinants of overall disability in progressive forms of MS. No evidence of progression (NEP) is a newer measure that reflects the absence of disability progression, including upper limb function and walking speed. Maintaining NEP status means stable disease with no worsening in EDSS, in walking ability (assessed by the Timed 25-Foot Walk (T25FW) test, or the time it takes to walk 25 feet as quickly and safely as possible), and in upper limb function (assessed by the 9-Hole Peg Test (9HPT), a test of arm and hand dexterity). Patients with PPMS have less frequent signs of disease activity, which include relapses and brain lesions (assessed though magnetic resonance imaging or MRI). So scientists proposed a new measure — called “no evidence of progression or active disease” (NEPAD) — to evaluate both NEP and clinical and MRI measures of active disease. The researchers believe that NEPAD may represent a more sensitive and comprehensive measure of disease control in PPMS patients. The randomized, double-blind ORATORIO Phase 3 trial (NCT01194570) analyzed the efficacy and safety of Ocrevus — developed by Genentech, part of the Roche group — in 732 PPMS patients (age range 18–55). Results showed that Ocrevus treatment delayed the relative risk of disability progression by 25% compared to placebo, while also reducing the volume of chronic brain lesions and total brain volume loss. As a result, Ocrevus became the first therapy approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the European Commission for both PPMS and relapsing MS. Now, researchers assessed Ocrevus’ effect in PPMS patients included in the Roche-funded ORATORIO study using as trial goals changes in NEP and NEPAD. These people received either 600 mg of Ocrevus or placebo by intravenous (IV) infusion every six months for a minimum of 120 weeks (about 2.3 years). The trial’s main goal was time to onset of clinical disability progression (CDP) sustained for at least 12 weeks. CDP was defined as a 1.0 point or greater increase in EDSS score from a baseline (study start) score of 5.5 or less, or a 0.5-point increase from a baseline score greater than 5.5. NEP status, analyzed in 230 placebo- and 461 Ocrevus-treated patients, was defined as no evidence of CDP for 12 weeks, no 20% or more change in hand/arm function as measured by the 9HPT for 12 weeks, and no 20% or more change in walking ability as measured by the T25FW test for 12 weeks. "The 20% cut-off for progression on the T25FW test and the 9HPT has previously been shown to be a clinically meaningful magnitude of disease progression," the study noted. In turn, NEPAD — assessed in 234 placebo- and 465 Ocrevus-treated patients — included NEP, no brain MRI-measured disease activity, and no relapses. Relapses were defined as new or worsening neurological symptoms attributable to MS lasting longer than 24 hours and preceded by neurological stability for a minimum of 30 days. Brain MRI scans were conducted at baseline, and weeks 24, 48, and 120; new or enlarging T2 lesions and/or T1 enhancing lesions were considered evidence of MRI disease activity (T1 MRI imaging offers information about current disease activity by highlighting areas of active inflammation, while a T2 MRI image provides information about disease burden or lesion load). Overall, the majority of the PPMS patients analyzed experienced clinical disease progression or evidence of disease activity. From baseline to week 120, Ocrevus-treated patients who achieved NEP (42.7% of 461 people) or NEPAD (29.9% of 465)  — no disease activity or progression — were found to have lower T2 brain lesion volume and a lower EDSS score (lesser disability) compared to those with evidence of MS progression. They also had a slightly superior performance on the 9HPT and the T25FW test. Patients who reached NEPAD also showed fewer T1 lesions than patients with progressing or active disease. Compared to placebo treatment, the proportion of Ocrevus-treated PPMS patients maintaining NEP or NEPAD from baseline to week 120 was higher — for NEP, 42.7% versus 29.1% in the placebo group; for NEPAD, 29.9% versus 9.4% in the placebo group. These results showed that Ocrevus treatment increased the proportion of PPMS patients with NEPAD throughout the 120 weeks of the study by three-fold. “In conclusion, ocrelizumab (Ocrevus) increased the proportion of patients with PPMS with no evidence of progression and no clinical and subclinical disease activity compared with placebo,” the team wrote. “As such, NEPAD may represent a meaningful and comprehensive disease outcome in patients with PPMS.” However, data from ORATORIO's open-label extension and real-world data are needed to "determine whether NEPAD maintained throughout 120 weeks will translate into sustained NEPAD and enhanced protection against accrual of disability in patients with PPMS over the long term," the researchers concluded. Of note, five of the study’s 11 authors are employees and/or shareholders of Roche or Genentech.

Treatment with Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) slows disability progression in primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS) in ways that may be of considerable importance to patients — including the possibility of delaying the need for a wheelchair by up to seven years, according to new data from a Phase 3…

Twenty years ago, the idea that B-cell depletion could treat multiple sclerosis would have been greeted with a hearty laugh by any well-respected neurologist or MS researcher — or perhaps a scoff. But times change and research advances. Today, a medicine that gets rid of certain B-cells may be the most powerful drug yet developed against…

March 28, at the latest, may be a historic date for the multiple sclerosis (MS) community — patients, families, caregivers, researchers, and physicians alike. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will have its say about the marketing approval for Ocrevus (ocrelizumab). The drug will be the first to offer benefit to…

Below is a transcript of the Multiple Sclerosis News Today interview with Dr. Peter Chin — principal medical director at Genentech — about the importance of the pending U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of a Biologics Licensing Application (BLA) for Ocrevus (ocrelizumab). An an indepth article on this interview, looking Ocrevus…

A detailed analysis of relapsing and primary progressive multiple sclerosis (MS) patients in the three Phase 3 trials of Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) showed that the treatment did not significantly increase their risk of infections — serious or otherwise. Certain infections, including common colds and influenza, were numerically more common among Ocrevus-treated patients,…

Genentech’s Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) increased the proportion of patients with no evidence of progression (NEP) in the recently concluded ORATORIO Phase 3 clinical trial in patients with primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS). The evaluation of NEP — a combined measure of three disability assessments — was a secondary exploratory endpoint of…

Recently published data from three Phase 3 trials of Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) show that the investigational drug does what no other therapy has achieved so far — working to prevent disease in both relapsing and primary progressive (PP) forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). Publications in the New England Journal…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently extended until the end of March its review of the Biologics License Application (BLA) for Ocrevus (ocrelizumab). The application was submitted by Roche, requesting FDA approval for Ocrevus as a treatment for patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) and — for a first…

Genentech is recruiting U.S. participants for a Phase 3 study (NCT02637856) of Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) in people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) who were not helped by previous disease-modifying therapies, according to a press release from the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. The trial is an open-label study, meaning…

Results from the ORATORIO trial, exploring Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) for the treatment of primary progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), showed that the drug stopped disease progression for more than two years in more patients than a placebo. The findings, a highlight at the European Committee for Treatment and Research…

Positive new data from Phase 3 clinical trials assessing Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) as a treatment for both relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) and primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS) were recently announced by Roche, the company responsible for marketing and developing this investigational therapy. The results are being presented at the 32nd Congress of the…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is giving priority review to a request to approve Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) as a treatment for both forms of multiple sclerosis, the drug’s developer, Genentech, announced. If the company’s Biologics License Application (BLA) is approved, Ocrevus will become the first drug able to treat patients with either relapsing or…

Data recently presented at the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers (CMSC) 2016 Annual Meeting showed that Roche/Genentech’s investigational drug ocrelizumab (Ocrevus) lowered the risk of disability progression in primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS), a condition for which no approved treatments exist. The study was presented during the “…

Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, was founded more than 35 years ago and has been focused on a variety of research fields, including cancer, immunology, neurodegenerative disorders, metabolic diseases, and infectious diseases. Genentech has been committed to discovering and developing new medicines for patients with major diseases of the nervous…

Genentech recently announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted its investigational medicine ocrelizumab, a potential treatment for primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS), Breakthrough Therapy Designation based on positive Phase 3 clinical trial results showing that ocrelizumab significantly reduced disability progression and other disease activity markers compared to placebo. The FDA designation is…

Roche announced positive results for three pivotal Phase III studies of experimental MS therapy ocrelizumab in relapsing multiple sclerosis and primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS) patients at this year’s ECTRIMS 2015 conference. The results, particularly for treating PPMS, indicate that the novel therapy may represent…

Genentech, a leading biotechnology company and member of the Roche Group, recently announced promising results on a pivotal Phase III clinical trial (ORATORIO) assessing its investigational therapy ocrelizumab as a treatment for patients with primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS). Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic, progressive neurodegenerative disorder that results from…

Roche recently announced encouraging results on its investigational medicine ocrelizumab as a therapy for patients with relapsing multiple sclerosis, which includes either RRMS or SPMS with relapses. Ocrelizumab was evaluated in two pivotal studies (OPERA I and OPERA II), where it was compared to interferon (IFN) beta-1a (Rebif®), the standard-of-care…