Category Archives: MS Treatment

By NOUR HABIB World Scene Writer on Apr 4, 2013, at 2:26 AMUpdated on 4/04 at 7:12 AM It took Amy Dallis two years to come to terms with the diagnosis of MS that she received in 2009. Dallis will participate in Walk MS on April 13. MIKE SIMONS / Tulsa World It's that type of research leading to such advancements - and, hopefully one day, a cure - that the National Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Society seeks to support. MS is a disease that affects the central nervous system - the brain, optic nerves and spinal cord. It can cause everything from extreme fatigue and problems with vision to numbness and paralysis. The Oklahoma chapter of the society is holding its 26th annual Walk MS on April 13 at Veterans Park, 1875 S. Boulder Ave. Along with going toward research in finding a cure, the funds raised at the event will also support services and programs for people with MS and their families in Oklahoma. Amy Dallis, 39, was diagnosed with MS in 2009. After two days of a numbing sensation that started in her feet and spread up to her waist, Dallis went to see a neurologist. Four hours … Continue reading →

As a third-year medical student Alex Normandin expected to be learning about patients, not become one himself. But then, the Montrealer and aspiring doctor noticed some alarming symptoms fatigue, numbness and problems with balance and coordination. Researchers at the Montreal Neurological Institute confirmed he has a particularly aggressive form of multiple sclerosis, an unpredictable and degenerative disease that affects the central nervous system. Most patients with MS do not become severely disabled because the illness moves slowly. But in Normandins case, the destruction was so fast that doctors expected him to need a wheelchair within months. Normandin, however, learned of a cutting-edge treatment run by Mark Freedman and Harry Atkins at the Ottawa General Hospital an experimental bone-marrow stem-cell transplant as a last resort for patients who fail to improve on drug therapy. Normandin became patient 19 of 24. His transplant took place in Ottawa in December 2008. The procedure is risky because it relies on toxic chemotherapy to wipe out the patients immune system in preparation for the stem-cell transplant, which re-boots the immune system. One patient died in an earlier phase of the trial. Normandin survived and spoke to the Gazette in April 2009, five months after having … Continue reading →

Ottawa doctors have developed a new treatment for multiple sclerosis that they say has eliminated the disease in 70 per cent of their patients. Multiple sclerosis, or MS, is a disease where the body's immune system attacks itself, causing damage to the spinal cord and brain. A team of doctors from the Ottawa Hospital are to publish findings in a yet-to-be-determined medical journal on a new treatment that uses stem cell transplants and high doses of chemotherapy. The doctors have tested 24 people over the past 13 years, starting as an experimental study for patients with severe symptoms who did not improve using drug therapy. Dr. Harold Atkins, a bone-marrow transplant expert, has helped lead the study. He said a large majority of the patients have gained long-term freedom from evidence of further MS. "These transplants are pushing the limits of technology," Atkins said. "We have to use very high doses of chemotherapy to get rid of the old immune system that's attacking the patient's brain that has a lot of side effects." Atkins admitted the side effects of chemotherapy can lead to infection or organ failure. He also said some patients have irreparable damage to their brain, and one … Continue reading →

On April 20 and 21, Fort Bend County resident Vicki Williams will participate in her 30th BP MS 150 Ride. A marathon runner, triathlete and part-time health club employee, Williams has ridden in MS rides across Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma. This years ride, however, will be much different than previous ones for Williams. After years of cycling and living an enviably active lifestyle, Williams herself has been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. In 2003, Williams began seeing colors while she ran. Hearing loss and other health problems arose. Despite years of participating in MS rides, the idea that she might have multiple sclerosis never crossed her mind. It was 2003, May 10, and I was running, and I started seeing colors in the corners of my eyes, Williams said. All along that same time, I was having a lot of issues with my left side. I never really put it all together, but my left leg wasnt cooperating like the rest of my body. Numbness in her foot led her to a podiatrist, and then knee problems led her to visit her orthopedic doctor. Nothing the doctors tried helped her, however, and all of her symptoms were thought to have been … Continue reading →

Oral disease-modifying drugs are recent additions to the multiple sclerosis market. New York, NY (PRWEB) April 03, 2013 More than 950 MS patients were asked to predict whether they expected their disease to improve, worsen or be the same in a year. Among patients taking oral DMDs, 34 percent expect their disease to be better and 49 percent expect their disease to worsen, compared with 16 percent of patients taking non-oral DMDs expecting their disease to improve and 62 percent expecting it to worsen. Additionally, patients who take oral DMDs are more satisfied with their lives since starting their current treatment. Thirty-six percent of MS patients on oral DMDs are more satisfied with their lives since starting their current treatment, compared with 27 percent of patients taking non-oral DMD treatments. About three in four of the DMD patients who plan to ask their physician to switch them to a specific brand say they will request an oral DMD. Still, many physicians seem hesitant to prescribe an oral DMD. Oral treatments for MS have been on the market for about two years, and were starting to see patients who have had a relapse in the past two years switching to the … Continue reading →

By Robert Weisman, Globe Staff Biogen Idec Inc. said Friday it will price Tecfidera, its newly approved pill to treat multiple sclerosis, at $54,900 a year per patient in the United States. Officials at the Weston-based biotechnology company said the figure represents a solid value for MS patients, who will take the capsule twice a day. Most MS treatments now on the market have to be injected or taken through intravenous infustion. We think its appropriate price, said Tony Kingsley, executive vice president for commercial operations at Biogen Idec. The clinical benefit of the product is very meaningful. We look at it in comparison to the alternatives on the market and the investment weve made. Biogen Idec, the largest Massachusetts-based biotechnology company, won Food and Drug Administration approval Wednesday to sell the oral therapy. Company officials said Tecfidera will distributed, stocked, and available topatients on or around Monday. MS is a chronic autoimmune disease that affects the central nervous systems of about 400,000 people in the US and about 2.5 million worldwide, disrupting communication between the brain and other parts of the body. Over time, patients can suffer from muscle weakness, loss of balance, and a progressive decline in function. … Continue reading →

WEST ORANGE, NJ--(Marketwire - Mar 29, 2013) - As March drew to a close, Kessler Foundation, a leader in cognitive rehabilitation research in multiple sclerosis (MS), announced the receipt of new grants from the National MS Society and the Consortium of MS Centers. The grants fund studies aimed at improving memory, predicting memory decline and exploring deficits in emotional processing in people with MS. At Kessler Foundation, MS research is conducted by scientists in Neuropsychology & Neuroscience Research, under the leadership of Nancy Chiaravalloti, PhD, director. "Multiple sclerosis is often diagnosed when people are in the prime of their lives," said Dr. DeLuca, vice president of Research and Training. "At Kessler Foundation, we conduct research to not only improve the brain function of individuals with MS, but to also help them stay active in their communities and continue working for as long as possible. As a result, their quality of life improves. Our team of internationally known researchers is dedicated to finding new treatments to help them live better lives." With the opening of the Kessler Foundation Center for Neuroimaging Research this spring, advances in research will occur at a more rapid pace. Equipped with a 3T Siemens Skyra Scanner, … Continue reading →

U.S. regulators on Wednesday approved a new multiple sclerosis drug made by Biogen Idec Inc that is widely expected to become the No. 1 oral treatment for the disease, with annual sales topping $3 billion. The drug, Tecfidera, activates a chemical pathway in the body known as Nrf2 that helps protect nerve cells from damage and inflammation. Following Wednesday's approval by the Food and Drug Administration, Biogen said it will launch the drug within the coming days. Multiple sclerosis is a chronic condition that attacks the central nervous system and can lead to numbness, weakness, paralysis and blindness. It affects more than 2.1 million people worldwide, according to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. "We expect a solid launch of Tecfidera, and our sense is that there is a bolus of patients in the queue ready to transition to therapy," Geoff Meacham, an analyst at J.P. Morgan, said in a research note. "However, we believe that Street expectations likely already account for this and then some." Shares of Weston, Massachusetts-based Biogen rose 3.2 percent to close at $182.68 on Wednesday. The shares have more than tripled over the past three years, mainly driven by high hopes for Tecfidera, known chemically as … Continue reading →

Last November, I examined five experimental drugs that appeared as if they had all of the tools necessary to become life-changing blockbusters from a financial and quality of life perspective. Yesterday, the first experimental drug I highlighted from Biogen Idec (NASDAQ: BIIB) was approved by the Food and Drug Administration as a first-line treatment for relapsing MS. Pardon the cliche, but I believe the greatest thing since sliced bread has just been bestowed upon MS patients whether they realize it yet or not. Greater efficacy with fewer side effects is possible! Tecfidera -- previously known as BG-12 in trials -- was studied in two different clinical trials known as Confirm and Define. In its Confirm study, Biogen noted that its pill, administered twice daily, reduced the rate of MS relapses by an impressive 49%, and was associated with a 71% to 99% drop in new or expanding lesions in both trials. What's truly unique about Tecfidera is its adverse events profile, which demonstrates the promise of fewer side effects with better efficacy. The most common side effects exhibited by patients on Tecfidera were flushing and gastrointestinal events, which often resulted in very low trial dropout rates. Biogen's new medication could … Continue reading →

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - Steve Waschensky has had multiple sclerosis for 26 years. He participated in the trial of Avonex, the first successful treatment, and he's been taking it ever since. But those injections have side effects. "Headaches for about 24 hours, basically a headache and a slight fever," he said. Now an oral drug called Tecfidera was just approved by the FDA. It was also tested in Buffalo, and it's very effective in three important areas. Dr. David Hojnacki of the Jacobs Neurological Institute said, "Reducing relapses, reducing accumulation of new MRI lesions in the brain, as well as reduction in disability progression." Doctors use MRI scans to follow the course of MS. Bright white areas are MS lesions, and they typically enlarge and increase in number during the disease, but the drug reduced that. It also has very few side effects. "We haven't had a good oral option, and now I think we really do. The phones have been ringing here in our office. Now that this drug has been approved there's been excitement among our patients and a lot of anticipation of this drug becoming available, and now it's here," Dr. Hojnacki said. Sign Waschensky up! "Oh, … Continue reading →