Category Archives: MS Treatment

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today Biogen Idec (NASDAQ: BIIB) announced that the European Commission (EC) has granted marketing authorization for PLEGRIDYTM (peginterferon beta-1a) as a treatment for adults with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), the most common form of multiple sclerosis (MS). PLEGRIDY is dosed once every two weeks and is administered subcutaneously with the PLEGRIDY PEN, a new ready-to-use autoinjector, or a prefilled syringe. PLEGRIDY offers people living with MS an interferon with compelling efficacy that requires considerably fewer injections than other platform therapies," said George A. Scangos, Ph.D., chief executive officer at Biogen Idec. The approval of PLEGRIDY demonstrates our commitment to improving the lives of patients by providing innovative therapies that meet their individual needs, including flexibility in managing their disease. PLEGRIDY, the only pegylated interferon approved for use in RRMS, has been proven to significantly reduce important measures of disease activity, including number of relapses, MRI brain lesions, and disability progression. The EC approval of PLEGRIDY is based on results from one of the largest pivotal studies of a beta interferon conducted, ADVANCE1, which involved more than 1,500 patients with relapsing forms of MS. In the ADVANCE clinical trial, PLEGRIDY, dosed once every two weeks, significantly reduced annualized relapse … Continue reading →

6-year-old found home alone after calling 911 6-year-old found home alone after calling 911 Updated: Tuesday, July 22 2014 6:10 PM EDT2014-07-22 22:10:35 GMT Updated: Tuesday, July 22 2014 6:07 PM EDT2014-07-22 22:07:51 GMT Updated: Tuesday, July 22 2014 5:02 PM EDT2014-07-22 21:02:59 GMT Updated: Tuesday, July 22 2014 4:54 PM EDT2014-07-22 20:54:39 GMT Updated: Tuesday, July 22 2014 4:43 PM EDT2014-07-22 20:43:02 GMT (WMC) Mississippians will get the chance to voice their opinions about a law requiring welfare recipients to be drug tested. The state law was supposed to take effect July 1, but was delayed after advocacy groups worried the new law might negatively affect poor families. On Tuesday, the Mississippi Department of Human Services will hold hearings to get comments from Mississippians about the new welfare drug testing law. The law states applicants for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or TANF, will have to answer a questionnaire. If the answers show the possibility of substance abuse, the person must take a drug test. Visit link: MS to hold public hearing about welfare drug testing law … Continue reading →

Paying respects: Mourners remember Tracy Connelly. Photo: Joe Armao One year after sex worker Tracy Connelly was murdered, many have returned to the place where she died to commemorate her. About 100 people stood holding candles outside sex worker support group St Kilda Gatehouse's headquarters on Monday night. Ms Connelly's partner, Tony Melissovas, found her body in the van where they lived, parked on Greeves Street on July 21, 2013. Mr Melissovas has been cleared as a suspect because he was receiving treatment for a hand injury on the night of her death. He was also at the event on Monday, which doubled as a tribute to other women who had been victims of violence. Tracy Connelly. Police believe that Tracy was killed by one of her clients, and that robbery may have been a motive. Advertisement They have yet to charge anyone with her murder, but are looking through thousands of number plates of cars in the area which Mr Melissovas recorded. Detective Senior Sergeant Stuart Bailey, who was at the memorial on Monday, said police had spoken to several people there who gave them information about new people they could speak to in their investigation. He urged the … Continue reading →

SOUTH BURLINGTON, Vt. - There are encouraging signs in multiple sclerosis research coming from a preliminary trial occurring at Fletcher Allen and UVM and 17 other centers around the world. Researchers are witnessing temporary reversals in the symptoms of some patients to a degree that has not been seen before. When you see Jay Blum walk down the hall, you would never know he is an avid golfer, plays bass in a rock band and sometime bikes 30 miles. There is something else you wouldn't know looking at this 57-year-old from Shelburne until you hear him talk to his doctor; Blum is one of about 1,800 MS patients who is treated at Fletcher Allen. "I can tell you that one in 500 Vermonters has MS. We have one of the highest prevalence and incidence in the United States," said Dr. Angela Applebee, director of the MS Center at Fletcher Allen. Applebee says they don't know why so many people in Vermont have MS, but they have a few ideas. She says a lack of vitamin D may be one of the causes, since we are further away from the equator. Genetics play a role. The general populations risk of getting … Continue reading →

Aberdeen, MS (PRWEB) July 18, 2014 Dr. John W. Starr, Jr., of the Golden Triangle Periodontal Center is now expanding his practice to include patients from Aberdeen, MS in need of laser gum disease treatment. Dr. Starr is a leading periodontist in the Columbus and Aberdeen, MS area and is one of the few dental professionals in the nation who have been trained to perform the LANAP protocol on patients suffering from moderate to severe periodontal disease. The LANAP protocol is a revolutionary gum disease treatment that eliminates the need for traditional gum treatment for most patients. Patients with periodontal disease develop deep pockets in the gums around the teeth where bacteria thrive and infect the surrounding tissue. As an experienced periodontist in the Aberdeen, MS area, Dr. Starr performs the LANAP treatment using the PerioLase MVP-7, the only laser that has been cleared by the FDA for the treatment of periodontal disease. The PerioLase MVP-7 targets and removes the offending bacteria and infected gum tissue without causing damage to the healthy surrounding tissue. Traditional surgery usually involves cutting away the gums with a scalpel and closing the resulting wounds with sutures. When comparing the two methods, the minimally invasive … Continue reading →

We expect the results of this study to be highly informative and determine the therapeutic utility and differentiating features of ALKS 8700, said Dr. Elliot Ehrich, Chief Medical Officer of Alkermes. ALKS 8700 leverages Alkermes expertise in prodrug chemistry and oral controlled-release formulations to offer potential differentiated tolerability and dosing for patients with MS. This phase 1 study will investigate the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of multiple formulations and doses of ALKS 8700, and is designed to determine those suitable to progress into advanced clinical testing. The initiation of the phase 1 study follows Alkermes filing of an Investigational New Drug (IND) application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the issuance of a composition of matter patent for ALKS 8700 from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in March 2014, which is expected to provide patent protection into 2033. About ALKS 8700 ALKS 8700 is an oral, novel and proprietary monomethyl fumarate (MMF) molecule in development for the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS). With properties designed to enable improved flexibility in the development of extended-release formulations, ALKS 8700 is designed to rapidly and efficiently convert to MMF in the body and to offer differentiated features as … Continue reading →

July 14, 2014, 4:43 p.m. ALBION Park's Troy Eccleston is attempting to raise enough funds to head overseas and receive potentially life-changing treatment for Multiple Sclerosis. Albion Park resident Troy Eccleston and his fiance Ainslie Sackey are trying to raise funds to go to Russia for treatment for his Multiple Sclerosis. Picture: GEORGIA MATTS ALBION Park's Troy Eccleston is attempting to raise enough funds to head overseas and receive potentially life-changing treatment for Multiple Sclerosis. MS is an autoimmune disorder, which means the body is triggered into thinking it is being invaded from the outside and starts attacking its own tissue. In the case of MS, the nerve fibres from the brain and spinal cord are attacked and scarred. This means that messages are no longer properly received by the muscles, hampering walking, arm and hand movement, eyesight and other areas. "During the first 10 years since my diagnosis, my symptoms worsened gradually," Mr Eccleston said. "I moved from the use of a leg brace, to a walking stick, to a crutch, but in the past two years I have needed the use of two crutches and now, I use a wheelchair most of the time. "I cannot use my … Continue reading →

A BALLARAT drug and alcohol treatment service provider holds grave concerns that at-risk adults may avoid seeking treatment due to a new statewide intake and assessment hotline. A BALLARAT drug and alcohol treatment service provider holds grave concerns that at-risk adults may avoid seeking treatment due to a new statewide intake and assessment hotline. The new program, which begins on September 1, will see Ballarat drug and alcohol users forced to call a 1300 number as the first step in seeking treatment including withdrawal, detox and rehabilitation. The organisation running the new system, the Australian Community Support Organisation, will then refer people to relevant local treatment providers. Until now, organisations like Ballarat Community Health and UnitingCare, had done their own intakes and assessments. We are very concerned that we wont have the same capacity to respond in terms of treatment, said Ballarat Community Health alcohol and other drugs and refugees team leader Claire Ryan. Now, with less than half the funding we used to receive, we will lose the capacity to respond to people requiring treatment. It is hard for people to take that first step to seek treatment and this may make it harder. The new model is part … Continue reading →

Bench to Bedside: Multiple Sclerosis and Tysabri, Part 2 - Ted Yednock http://www.ibiology.org/ibioeducation/taking-courses/bench-to-bedside/tysabri-natalizumab-treatment-multiple-sclerosis.html Overview In the first of his two ... By: iBioEducation … Continue reading →

July 11, 2014, 9 p.m. Multiple sclerosis sufferer Troy Eccleston will travel to Russia in September for risky but potentially life-saving treatment. Troy Eccleston, with fiancee Ainslie Sackey, is ready to go to Russia. Picture: SYLVIA LIBER Multiple sclerosis sufferer Troy Eccleston will travel to Russia in September for risky but potentially life-saving treatment. A controversial stem cell transplant is the last hope for the 47-year-old Albion Park Rail man whose symptoms have worsened in the last two years, leaving him confined to a wheelchair. Mr Eccleston was not eligible for a Sydney trial of haematopoietic stem cell transplantation due to his age and the advanced nature of his MS, but he has been accepted for treatment at the Pirogov Centre in Moscow. His fiancee Ainslie Sackey and family and friends are now busy fund-raising, with a target of $70,000 to pay for the 30-day treatment and associated transport costs. "Over the next two years it is expected I will grow a new immune system with no memory of MS." "The treatment involves injections to stimulate my bone marrow to release millions of stem cells, removing the cells and freezing them," Mr Eccleston said. "I will then be given large … Continue reading →