People with multiple sclerosis (MS) are absent from their places of employment nearly twice as often as individuals without the neurodegenerative disease, according to a new study based on U.S. data. The results also showed missing work is significantly more common for MS patients who are unmarried, experience…

Among multiple sclerosis (MS) patients starting on Lemtrada (alemtuzumab), an early decrease in the leakiness of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) is associated with a lower likelihood of disease activity after two years, according to a new study. The blood-brain barrier is a cellular divisor that regulates which substances…

Long-term treatment with tolebrutinib significantly reduced signs of disease-related brain damage in people with relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS), according to new data from a Phase 2 clinical trial and its extension study. Specifically, the investigational oral therapy was found to keep the number of inflamed brain lesions…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has agreed to review TG Therapeutics’ application seeking the approval of ublituximab as a treatment for people with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis. An FDA’s decision is expected on or before Sept. 28. The agency is not currently planning to hold an…

Nerve Repair Therapy NVG-291 Safe, Well-tolerated in Healthy People This experimental therapy has a long way to go before it becomes reality. But it’s encouraging that this first step found NVG-291’s side effects to be mild and short-lasting. NVG-291 is designed to promote remyelination by modulating an enzyme called…

Sanofi Genzyme has extended its collaboration with Koneksa to bring digital measures into its Phase 3 trials of tolebrutinib, an investigational therapy for relapsing and progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). Through this joint effort, Koneksa’s digital biomarkers were applied to clinical trials of Parkinson’s…

Lemtrada (alemtuzumab) does not have a substantial effect on blood pressure or platelet counts, and does not lead to bleeding in the brain of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, according to a small Belgian study. The findings contrast with previous studies showing an increase in blood pressure, stroke, and…

The European Commission (EC) has approved Aubagio (teriflunomide) for the treatment of children and adolescents, ages 10 to 17, with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). Aubagio, approved for adults with RRMS since 2013, is now the first oral therapy available as a first-line treatment for pediatric patients in the European…

Where has the time gone? It’s been three years since I completed my second round of Lemtrada (alemtuzumab) infusions. So, it’s time to take another look at where this journey has taken me. Lemtrada is a monoclonal antibody treatment that wipes out rogue B- and T-cells in the…

Sanofi Genzyme has launched a website to help connect people with multiple sclerosis (MS) to one of the company’s four ongoing clinical trials testing its investigational therapy tolebrutinib. Interested men and women may qualify for a clinical trial if they are…

Lemtrada (alemtuzumab) may slow the progression of multiple sclerosis (MS) and lower the conversion rate of relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) to secondary progressive MS (SPMS), a long-term study suggests. The results showed that patients converting to SPMS — in which a person’s disability gets steadily worse — were older,…

Stem Cell Therapy Shows 2-year Benefit for Progressive MS Patients in Phase 1 Trial Stem cell studies always catch my eye. This very small study involves people treated with their own bone marrow, which was collected and expanded to give it the ability to modulate the MS immune response…

Investigators are looking for people with progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) to participate in two Phase 3 clinical trials assessing the safety and effectiveness of tolebrutinib (SAR442168), an oral BTK inhibitor that is being investigated as a potential treatment, the National Multiple Sclerosis Society announced…

An autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant (AHSCT) is more effective than Lemtrada (alemtuzumab) at achieving no evidence of disease activity and preventing relapses in people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), a real-life study in Sweden reported. Adverse events (side effects) were more frequent with AHSCT over the first three…

Mayzent Approved for Active SPMS Patients in England and Wales This is great news for people with MS in England and Wales. Mayzent (siponimod) is a needed weapon in the MS battle. It is approved for use in active cases of secondary progressive MS (SPMS), while most other disease-modifying…

Prior treatment with disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) does not affect the long-term benefits of Aubagio (teriflunomide) in treating relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a review study. The study, “Prior treatment status: impact on the efficacy and safety of teriflunomide in multiple sclerosis,”…

Continuous treatment with Aubagio (teriflunomide) can safely lower the risk of relapses and disability progression in children with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to interim data from the open-label extension of a Phase 3 trial. These findings were detailed at MSVirtual2020 by Tanuja Chitnis, MD,…

Tolebrutinib (SAR442168), an investigational oral BTK inhibitor to treat relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), was seen to prevent the loss of myelin when given to a mouse model of demyelination in a preclinical study. The investigative therapy achieves this by preventing…

Aubagio (teriflunomide), taken as a 14 mg tablet once a day, shows long-term safety and efficacy in patients with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to results of the Phase 3 TOWER extension study. Treatment was generally well tolerated by the 751 patients using Aubagio for a median…

About 20%, or 1 in 5, multiple sclerosis (MS) patients fail to adhere to oral disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) taken each day, and about 1 in 4 stop using a prescribed daily oral treatment within one year, a study based on reported real-world use found. The study “Real-world adherence to,…

Like others these days, I’m worried about COVID-19. In fact, I’m probably more worried than some. I’m old, I have MS, and I’ve been treated with the disease-modifying therapy Lemtrada (alemtuzumab) — a trifecta of potential trouble. Lemtrada suppresses part of the immune system. It’s one of the…

I love it when a multiple sclerosis treatment works well for someone. It doesn’t matter if that treatment is a medication, a form of physical therapy, or a diet. Good news is good news. So, when I saw this post on the Lemtrada for MS Treatment Facebook group, I…

Prescriptions of Roche’s Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) among multiple sclerosis (MS) patients initiating or switching a disease-modifying therapy (DMT) continue to rise in Europe, according to a survey conducted by Spherix Global Insights. Ocrevus, an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody administered directly into a vein, was approved in the European Union to treat active forms…

Happy Lemtrada anniversary to me! It’s been two years since I completed my second round of Lemtrada (alemtuzumab) infusions, and I’m happy to say that the results have been good. Not everyone’s experience with Lemtrada will mirror mine, but I don’t think I’m much different than most. My brain MRI…

The experimental BTK inhibitor SAR442168 showed an acceptable safety profile and met its primary endpoint — a significant reduction in the number of new lesions visible on a brain imaging scan — in a Phase 2 trial in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), study results show. SAR442168,…

Genentech‘s Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) continues to be the most prescribed medication to reduce inflammatory disease in people with active secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS) among U.S. neurologists, even though Novartis’ Mayzent (siponimod) and EMD Serono’s Mavenclad (cladribine) were approved in March to treat this same MS…

Seven months after starting a safety review of Lemtrada (alemtuzumab), the Pharmacovigilance Risk…

Immunic Therapeutics announced that a Phase 2 clinical trial of IMU-838, its experimental oral therapy for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), is fully enrolled ahead of schedule. The trial, called EMPhASIS, also exceeded its target number of participants: Immunic set an initial recruitment goal of 195 patients by mid-2020, and enrolled 210…

Prescriptions of two multiple sclerosis (MS) treatments —  Merck KGaA‘s Mavenclad (cladribine) and Roche‘s Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) — 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…

Careful profiling of inflammatory markers in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of multiple sclerosis patients, coupled with standard exams and scans, helps in understanding disease evolution and treatment response, a case report suggests. It followed a relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) patient whose inflammatory markers in the CSF remained high over time, and…