News, info and tips for living with multiple sclerosis
Have you seen the TV ad for Tecfidera? The one that shows a woman being able to do all sorts of active things because she’s on the drug, which has reduced the frequency of her Multiple Sclerosis exacerbations? I was surprised when I saw it on my screen one day. Frankly, I didn’t think there was enough of an audience of potential Tecfidera users to justify the cost of this…Continue Reading
If you have Multiple Sclerosis the chances are good that you’ve used, or will use, a drug made by Biogen. The biophamaceutical company makes Avonex, Tysabri, Tecfidera, Fampya, Plegridy and Zinbryta to treat MS. I’ve used two of them myself and participated in the double-blind study for Avonex, way back when. Now, Biogen’s Chief Executive Officer, George Scangos, has announced that he’s leaving. What will that mean to those of…Continue Reading
A friend of mine was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis about fifteen years ago. She’s been very stable since her DX without being on any disease modifying drugs. But, we’ve both wondered if she should be proactive and start using using Avonex, Betaseron, Copaxone, Tysabri or another of the many disease modifying therapies that are available today. So far, her neurologist has suggested that my friend hold off. I’ve lived with…Continue Reading
It had been hoped that Biogen’s experimental drug opicinumab would be able to repair mylin. As those of us who live with Multiple Sclerosis know all too well, mylin is sort of an insulator to our nerves. MS destroys mylin and, in doing so, short circuits our nervous system. Biogen announced today that Phase 2 of its opicinumab trial, named SYNERGY, failed to meet its primary goal of improving physical…Continue Reading
There’s now a once-a-month injection for treating relapsing multiple sclerosis. The drug is called Zinbryta (daclizumab) and it was just approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Zinbryta is self-administered subcutaneously, which means using needles that are shorter than the ones that are used for drugs, such as Avonex, which are administered into the muscle. Clinical data, reported by Zinbryta’s manufacturer, Biogen, shows Zinbryta significantly reduced relapses and brain lesions…Continue Reading
My neurologist tells me “the buzz is good” about ocrelizumab. The investing web site Motley Fool calls it “the revolutionary Multiple Sclerosis drug you’ve never heard of.” Ocrelizumab, which Genentech hopes to market under the name Ocrevus, is special because it’s designed to treat primary-progressive, as well as relapsing-remitting, MS. How does it work? I’m not a scientist, but after reading a lot of scientific writing here’s my best attempt to…Continue Reading
Patients who use mitoxantrone appear to be at increased risk of colon cancer, according to a new study, and as well as acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Mitoxantrone is used to treat aggressive relapsing-remitting, and also progressive, MS when the patient doesn’t respond to other drugs. It suppresses the immune system and was first developed as a treatment for some cancers. Its use is limited because past studies have shown that…Continue Reading
Lipoic Acid is an antioxident that’s been used in Germany to treat some diabetes symptoms; including numbness, pain and burning of legs and arms. Do those symptoms sound familiar? Similar to some of our Multiple Sclerosis symptoms, right? A small study led by Rebecca Spain, MD, MSPH, from the VA Portland Healthcare System and Oregon Health and Science University looked at using Lipoic Acid as an inexpensive M.S. therapy. The…Continue Reading
Could an over-the-counter drug, used to treat sniffles, help ease M.S. symptoms and maybe even repair myelin? Maybe…someday. The drug is clemastine fumarate, a common antihistamine used to treat cold and allergy symptoms. In a small, preliminary study involving M.S. and optic neuropathy, (damage to the nerve that sends info from the eye to the brain), participants who took clemastine fumarate showed what the study terms a “modest” improvement in…Continue Reading