New MS drug offers effective and convenient option for patients, study says

CLEVELAND, Ohio---A new oral medication for the most common form of multiple sclerosis significantly cut down on relapses and brain lesions, according to a study published Thursday in the New England Journal of Medicine. The drug may offer a safe and convenient alternative for patients who want to avoid frequent injections.

"It's an important option [for patients]," said Nicholas LaRocca, vice president of healthcare delivery and policy research at the National MS Society.

The drug, BG-12, or dimethyl fumarate, is a new type of treatment that researchers believe may work by reducing inflammation in the brain or by helping cells in the brain and spinal cord protect themselves from the damage that is characteristic of the disease, said Dr. Robert Fox, lead author of the study and medical director of the Cleveland Clinic's Mellen Center for Multiple Sclerosis.

"BG-12 seems to offer us a step forward in MS treatment," said Fox.

There is no cure for MS, a disease in which the body's own defense system attacks the protective layer surrounding nerves, and can cause numbness, paralysis and loss of vision. About 400,000 people in the U.S. have the disease, according to the National MS Society.

BG-12 is the latest in an explosion of new therapies available to treat the disease -- there are now nine FDA-approved medications for relapsing MS, and several more in development. Less than 20 years ago, there were none, said LaRocca.

BG-12, being developed by pharmaceutical company Biogen Idec, is under review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and could gain approval by December, Fox said.

Most available treatments for MS are injections or infusions, and standard first-line treatment for patients is an infusion that takes a half a day to administer 13 times a year.

"Initially patients are happy and fine with that, but it gets old after a bit of time," Fox said.

If approved by the FDA, BG-12 would be the second pill available to treat the disease. The first, a drug called Gilenya (fingolimod) manufactured by Novartis AG, is about as effective as the new drug, but has had cardiovascular and infection safety concerns.

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New MS drug offers effective and convenient option for patients, study says