The Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers (CMSC) has launched a monthly webinar series, in partnership with NeurologyLive, to keep doctors and others treating people with multiple sclerosis (MS) informed of the latest in disease care and research. Called “The Ever Changing Face of MS,” the series opened on…
treatment
Phase 4 Trial Will Test if Ocrevus Can Prevent MS Onset in RIS Patients Yes, you’re reading this right. This trial aims to see if Ocrevus can stop MS before it’s officially diagnosed — when it may be smoldering and presenting a minimum of MS-like activity. In July, this…
A new 3D model of the human nervous system is meant to mimic key processes in the development of the myelin sheath — the fatty coating around nerve cells that is damaged in multiple sclerosis (MS) — to help with research into treatments that promote myelination. This model might also…
Isn’t it just like me to start my column with a physics analogy that is already confusing? Please stick with me, as all will be revealed. My point is that if a black hole is big enough, you might slip through its event horizon without even noticing. There would…
Sometimes it seems as if people with MS are asked to flip a coin to make what’s arguably the most important decision about their treatment: which disease-modifying therapy (DMT) to use. More than 20 DMTs are approved in the U.S., similar to what’s available in the rest of the…
Yale University is launching CELLO, a multicenter study to investigate the efficacy of Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) in treating people with lesions suggestive of multiple sclerosis (MS), a condition known as radiologically isolated syndrome. The Phase 4 study (NCT04877457) aims to evaluate whether short-term treatment with Ocrevus can…
Two global Phase 3 clinical trials comparing fenebrutinib, an investigational oral BTK inhibitor by Roche, with Aubagio (teriflunomide) are now enrolling adults with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), the National MS Society announced in a press release. The twin studies, called FENhance 1 (NCT04586023)…
Treatment with Zeposia (ozanimod) significantly reduces the risk of relapse, decreases the proportion of patients experiencing a relapse, and has a better safety profile than Aubagio (teriflunomide) for people with relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS), according to an indirect comparison of clinical trial data.
People with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) using approved oral disease-modifying therapies generally tolerate the treatments well, with real-world adverse event profiles similar to those seen in clinical trials, an analysis of U.S. data indicates. Results also suggest high adherence to these therapies — meaning patients are usually taking the therapies…
FDA Rejects Under-the-skin Tysabri for Relapsing MS I expect this decision will be a disappointment for those who had hoped to be able to self-administer highly effective Tysabri as a shot rather than an IV infusion. But I switched from Avonex to Tysabri, because after a few years of…
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has rejected Biogen‘s request for approval of under-the-skin administration of Tysabri (natalizumab) as a treatment for relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). “This response from the FDA does not affect the intravenous administration of Tysabri, a well-established high-efficacy treatment with a…
The Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada has awarded CA$1 million to a project helping doctors who treat multiple sclerosis (MS) patients make more personalized treatment decisions through the use of artificial intelligence (AI). The society awarded the five-year grant (worth about $814,800) to Douglas Arnold, MD, a neurologist with…
TG Therapeutics has expanded its contract with Samsung Biologics to manufacture ublituximab, an investigational therapy for relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). “Samsung is the global leader in biologics manufacturing and we are happy to have them as our partner as we look forward to the potential commercialization…
Editor’s note: The Multiple Sclerosis News Today team is providing in-depth coverage of the 2021 Virtual AAN Annual Meeting, held April 17–22. Go here to read stories from the conference. After starting treatment with the multiple sclerosis (MS) therapy Mavenclad (cladribine), some types of immune cells are more affected…
Editor’s note: The Multiple Sclerosis News Today team is providing in-depth coverage of the 2021 Virtual AAN Annual Meeting, held April 17–22. Go here to read the latest stories from the conference. A novel method to calculate how long it takes therapies for multiple sclerosis (MS) to become fully effective…
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. Vumerity (diroximel fumarate) continues to be safe and well-tolerated, in addition to reducing measures of disease activity in people…
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…
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. A majority of the relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) patients given Mavenclad (cladribine) tablets in the CLARITY Phase 3 trial did…
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. Disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) that target CD20 are associated with worse outcomes from COVID-19 in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, an…
Columns
MS News That Caught My Eye Last Week: COVID-19 and Flares, Hiding MS Status, Blood Proteins, Tysabri
#AANAM – COVID-19 Often Leads to Flares in MS Patients, Survey Finds I’ve read more than a few social media posts from people with MS who are concerned that the COVID-19 vaccines will cause a flare. National MS Association guidelines say the vaccines may cause a temporary, mild fever…
As comic Rodney Dangerfield might have said, older people with MS “just don’t get no respect.” By older, I mean those of us who are 55 and up. By respect, I mean from researchers and some neurologists. So, as I approach my 73rd birthday, I have to tip my cap…
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. Treatment with Tysabri (natalizumab) can improve mental and social health in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to new…
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. Ublituximab, an investigational therapy for relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), significantly outperformed Aubagio (teriflunomide) at reducing patients’…
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. Note: This story was updated April 21, 2021, to clarify that Kesimpta will be available in the next three months…
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. Common B-cell depleting therapies, such as rituximab and Ocrevus (ocrelizumab), may result in shorter duration B-cell depleting effects in…
Helper T-cells Drive Transition from RRMS to SPMS, Study Suggests The T-cells referred to in this study, known as CD4+ cells, are believed to play a significant part in central nervous system inflammation. The disease-modifying treatment Lemtrada (alemtuzumab) is designed to destroy these misbehaving T-cells, along with B-cells, so…
Kesimpta (ofatumumab) has been approved in the U.K. as the first self-administered, at-home, B-cell-targeting therapy for people with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) and active disease. More specifically, the approval includes patients with either clinically isolated syndrome, relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS), or active secondary progressive MS (SPMS), who have…
Tecfidera (dimethyl fumarate) was given the green light by health regulators in China to treat people with relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS) — clinically isolated syndrome, relapsing-remitting MS, and active secondary progressive MS. The National Medical Products Administration’s (NMPA) decision came through a priority review of clinical trial data for Tecfidera,…
A group of helper T-cell (Th cells), a type of immune cell, could be responsible for the transition from relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) to secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS), with important implications for diagnosing and treating SPMS, a new study found. The study, “Involvement of cytotoxic Eomes-expressing…
The 2021 John Dystel Prize for multiple sclerosis (MS) research has been awarded to Vijay Kuchroo, PhD, a professor at Harvard Medical School, in Boston, for his work in uncovering the underlying immune mechanisms that drive the neurodegenerative disorder. “Professor Kuchroo’s…