safety

October 2, 2017October 2, 2017

Long-term Lemtrada Treatment Benefits Demonstrated in Extension Study

News

A five-year study demonstrated that Sanofi-Genzyme’s Lemtrada (alemtuzumab) provides long-term benefits for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis patients, reducing relapse rates and preventing the progression of the disease. Importantly, most patients required ... Read more

September 20, 2017September 19, 2017

Data Differences: Better Records, Better Care

Columns, MS in Motion - A Column by Mike Knight

“I’m sorry, these files take forever to copy,” the woman at the registration desk says, breaking the silence that had settled between us while she uploaded MRI scans from ... Read more

September 12, 2017September 13, 2017

Swedish Study Suggests Stem Cell Transplants as Possible Treatment for Aggressive RRMS

News

Autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplants for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis are superior to currently approved disease-modifying drugs, according to a Swedish study published in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & ... Read more

August 8, 2017August 8, 2017

‘Easy Rider’ Dreams? Say Yes to the Motorcycle

Columns, The MS Wire - A Column by Ed Tobias

Reading some social media posts the other day, I found myself humming a line from a late 1960s Arlo Guthrie song: “I don’t want a pickle. Just want to ... Read more

July 11, 2017July 14, 2017

Europe Restricts Use of MS Therapy Zinbryta After Liver Damage Cases and a Death

News

The European Medicines Agency has restricted the use of Zinbryta (daclizumab) for relapsing multiple sclerosis after reports of patients experiencing severe liver damage and one dying of liver disease. The ... Read more

July 10, 2017July 14, 2017

Experts Call for Tighter Regulation of Stem Cell Therapies in Use at Clinics Worldwide

News

Advertising for stem cell therapies not supported by clinical research — often made directly to patients and sometimes promoted as a “cure” for diseases like multiple sclerosis or Parkinson’s ... Read more

May 16, 2017May 16, 2017

Multiple Sclerosis Experts Offer Guidelines on Contraceptive Use Among Women with MS

News

Two studies that recently appeared in the Multiple Sclerosis Journal shed light on how contraceptive use may affect women with MS, as well as how the disease might affect the safety and ... Read more

May 12, 2017May 12, 2017

MSAA’s Dr. Jack Burks Responds to Readers’ Questions About Ocrevus and Its Use

News

Recently approved, Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) should now be available nationwide for patients prescribed the therapy. But as with any new treatment, concerns about safety and practical issues are on many ... Read more

April 27, 2017April 27, 2017

Genentech Highlights Rapid Actions of MS Therapy Ocrevus at AAN Meeting

News

Within the first two months of treatment, Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) reduced relapses in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients by more than half compared to those on Rebif, and almost completely prevented ... Read more

April 20, 2017April 20, 2017

AAN Annual Meeting Offers First Ocrevus Data Update Since MS Therapy’s Approval by FDA

Faith of the Mustard Seed - a Column by Debi Wilson, News

New data on the recently approved multiple sclerosis (MS) drug Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) will be presented at the upcoming American Academy of Neurology (AAN) Annual Meeting 2017, which will take ... Read more

April 19, 2017June 26, 2017

Are Ocrevus and Rituxan Similar? Neurologists Respond to Patients’ Concerns

News, Rituxan

While many multiple sclerosis patients celebrated the recent approval of Ocrevus (ocrelizumab), others argued that the drug is largely a rebranded version of rituximab. Rituximab — sold as Rituxan for indications like ... Read more

April 4, 2017April 4, 2017

Transcript of Interview with Dr. Robert Lisak, a Neurologist and MS Expert, About Ocrevus

News

Here is a transcript of the Multiple Sclerosis News Today interview about Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) with Dr. Robert Lisak of the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers (CMSC). Lisak, a professor ... Read more

April 4, 2017April 4, 2017

Ocrevus Holds Promise, But Needs to Prove Itself in ‘Long Term,’ Says Dr. Robert Lisak with CMSC

News

Interest in  Ocrevus (ocrelizumab), the first FDA-approved treatment for both relapsing and primary progressive multiple sclerosis, is running high among patients and the organization representing them — as, arguably, are expectations ... Read more

March 20, 2017March 20, 2017

Alkermes Begins Phase 3 Study of ALKS 8700 as Relapsing MS Treatment

News

Alkermes has started a Phase 3 clinical trial evaluating ALKS 8700, the oral monomethyl fumarate (MMF) prodrug it is developing for the treatment of relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). ... Read more

February 27, 2017February 27, 2017

#ACTRIMS2017 – Novantrone Lowers Relapse Rates over Long Term, But Carries Cancer Risk

News

Ten years after completing treatment with Novantrone (mitoxantrone), a chemotherapy drug, multiple sclerosis (MS) patients showed evidence of markedly lower annualized relapse rates, but the therapy’s effects began to wane after ... Read more

February 24, 2017February 24, 2017

#ACTRIMS2017 – 3 Trials Show MS Patients Receiving Ocrevus Had No Elevated Infection Risk

News

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 ... Read more

February 3, 2017February 3, 2017

How MS Patients Judge Their Treatments Differs from Doctors’ Views, Study Reports

News

Considerable differences exist in how multiple sclerosis patients, healthcare providers and insurance companies assess the value of current MS treatments, according to a literature review study by the data ... Read more

August 15, 2016August 15, 2016

New Pre-HSCT Treatment May Make Stem Cell Transplants a Safer Option for MS Patients

News

Scientists at Stanford University School of Medicine have developed a method for stem cell transplants that may do away with the need for prior systematic treatment with chemotherapy or radiotherapy. ... Read more

July 15, 2016July 26, 2016

Patients Need To Know What Drugs Do Inside Our Bodies

Columns, What's Important Now -- An MS Column by Ian Franks

Oral therapy Tecfidera (dimethyl fumarate) seems to be emerging as a first-line treatment for relapsing multiple sclerosis – according to Biogen, the company that developed it. That’s good news, ... Read more

July 5, 2016July 6, 2016

Latest Findings on RRMS Oral Therapy Tecfidera (Dimethyl Fumarate) Detailed in New Report

News

Since its approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2013, Tecfidera (dimethyl fumarate) has emerged as a first-line treatment for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), the most common form ... Read more