New treatments for MS
May is Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Month. Here are two new treatments that may help those with MS cope better
By Lisa Hannam
Multiple sclerosis is an often-debilitating disease that attacks the myelin, the protective covering around the nerves of the central nervous system (which consists of the spinal cord and the brain), causing cognitive, muscle and mobility problems. The disease affects two to three times as many women as men; it’s estimated that 37,000 to 56,000 Canadian women suffer from MS.
Fingolimod
Studies published by The New England Journal of Medicine show that oral meds could replace the injections MS patients now endure. Fingolimod, an oral immunosuppressant, was given daily to MS patients in two separate studies involving more than 2,500 participants. Researchers found that it significantly reduced the progression and relapse rates during a one-year period. The theory is that it may repair the myelin, but the long-term effects have yet to be studied.
Cladribine
Other research, led by Queen Mary–University of London (England), enrolled more than 1,300 MS patients to evaluate the efficacy of cladribine, an oral med currently used for hairy cell leukemia. It would only need to be taken for one to two months per year. Side effects were minimal, says Dr. Mark Freedman, director of the Multiple Sclerosis Research Unit at The Ottawa Hospital, which participated in the trial. The drug targets the white blood cells thought to have a role in MS, and stops them from damaging the central nervous system.
“Patients love the fact that they don’t have to do injections. However, cladribine is unlikely to be cheap,” says Freedman. Cladribine and fingolimod are awaiting approval from Health Canada for treating MS and are being studied for their adverse effects. Freedman would not speculate when these drugs could be available for Canadians.
This article was originally titled "New treatments for those with MS" in the May 2010 issue of Best Health. Subscribe today to get the full Best Health experience—and never miss an issue!—and make sure to check out what's new in the latest issue of Best Health.
Best Health Magazine, May 2010
May help, thats a pretty hopeless statement stupid in fact , secondary progressive and primary progressive ms have virtually no treatment if any and any meds which are prescribed for ms are very toxic with nasty side effects .
After a hundred years or so of research its pretty pathetic that this is all that can be offered dont tell us hope and new treatments are nearby they dont even know what causes the disease let alone what to treat it with .
How much money from unsuspecting donors is spent and pocketed by drug companies to make them filthy rich while praying on the sick and trusting , in the animal world they are called vultures, predators ,scavengers , bottom feeders .
When you have a treatment that actually helps all types of ms maybe than you can try the false hope speech again as of now i would think the ms societys , the drug companies , the medical communities , have lost a lot of credibility with the people who have to deal with the actual disease.
Try walking on one leg while you have to practically drag the other behind you , not being able to feel anything , not being able to hold your grandchildren because you are afraid you will drop them , losing your ability to support yourself with dignity because you lost your job,gradually losing your mobility and independance especially at the earlier years,these are some of the indignities and there are many more if you have never experienced them than your in for a real eye-opener ,people have to endure this or they are labeled as complainers .
All we are asking for is some kind of treatment that works safely to at least give us some kind of hope because with out hope it would be very easy to just give up.