Category Archives: MS Treatment

ScienceDaily (July 31, 2012) Wayne State University School of Medicine researchers, working with colleagues in Canada, have found that one or more substances produced by a type of immune cell in people with multiple sclerosis (MS) may play a role in the disease's progression. The finding could lead to new targeted therapies for MS treatment. B cells, said Robert Lisak, M.D., professor of neurology at Wayne State and lead author of the study, are a subset of lymphocytes (a type of circulating white blood cell) that mature to become plasma cells and produce immunoglobulins, proteins that serve as antibodies. The B cells appear to have other functions, including helping to regulate other lymphocytes, particularly T cells, and helping maintain normal immune function when healthy. In patients with MS, the B cells appear to attack the brain and spinal cord, possibly because there are substances produced in the nervous system and the meninges -- the covering of the brain and spinal cord -- that attract them. Once within the meninges or central nervous system, Lisak said, the activated B cells secrete one or more substances that do not seem to be immunoglobulins but that damage oligodendrocytes, the cells that produce a … Continue reading →

SAN FRANCISCO, CA--(Marketwire -07/31/12)- Unity Technologies, provider of the Unity multi-platform game engine and development tools, announced the Unity Pro MS&T Bundle. The collection of Unity tools will be the first of its kind for Unity Technologies and signifies their dedication to meeting specific needs of the MS&T development community in one package. Unity, an intuitive and powerful engine and toolset for interactive 3D development, has been used to create thousands of games for entertainment along with an ever-increasing number of serious games, computer based training, distributed learning, virtual worlds, data visualization, interactive multimedia instruction, virtual medical training and task management training applications. The Unity Pro MS&T Bundle was designed for the significant number of development studios outside of the entertainment sector, many of which are specifically devoted to simulation and training programs. JANUS Research Group, Inc., an industry leader in Serious Games and Interactive Multimedia Instruction, has been developing solutions with Unity over the past seven years. "We are very excited about the MS&T bundle offering as it includes several domain relevant features such as Geographic Information Systems (GIS) data Import and SCORM," said Clint Little, Serious Games Director, Engineering and Innovation Division, JANUS Research Group, Inc. "We look … Continue reading →

Public release date: 31-Jul-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Julie O'Connor julie.oconnor@wayne.edu 313-577-8845 Wayne State University - Office of the Vice President for Research DETROIT -- Wayne State University School of Medicine researchers, working with colleagues in Canada, have found that one or more substances produced by a type of immune cell in people with multiple sclerosis (MS) may play a role in the disease's progression. The finding could lead to new targeted therapies for MS treatment. B cells, said Robert Lisak, M.D., professor of neurology at Wayne State and lead author of the study, are a subset of lymphocytes (a type of circulating white blood cell) that mature to become plasma cells and produce immunoglobulins, proteins that serve as antibodies. The B cells appear to have other functions, including helping to regulate other lymphocytes, particularly T cells, and helping maintain normal immune function when healthy. In patients with MS, the B cells appear to attack the brain and spinal cord, possibly because there are substances produced in the nervous system and the meninges the covering of the brain and spinal cord that attract them. Once within the meninges or central nervous system, Lisak said, the activated B … Continue reading →

NHS funding for a groundbreaking drug piloted in the North East for patients with multiple sclerosis is now mandatory. The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (Nice) has stipulated that adults with relapsing remitting MS not responding to treatment with first-line interferon injections should have access to fingolimod, an oral pill that cuts relapses by more than half compared to a standard injection. Clinical trials that began in 2004 at the regional centre for the treatment of MS at Newcastles Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI) has meant patients in the North East were among the first worldwide to try fingolimod. Now all eligible patients should have access to the daily pill, which is proven to be twice as effective as a standard injection. Dr Martin Duddy, consultant neurologist at the RVI said: A number of patients at our centre have already started treatment with fingolimod and we anticipate these numbers will increase over the coming months. Our patients are keen to get started on treatment and we are delighted to be one of the first centres in the UK to have our service up and running. It is an important step forward and it gives us another option in the treatment for … Continue reading →

VANCOUVER -- Researchers in Vancouver suggest a widely used treatment for the most common form of multiple sclerosis may not prevent the progression of disability. Multiple sclerosis attacks the brain and spinal cord, and can cause neurological issues which range from mild problems to serious disability, such as paralysis. The drugs which were studied, known as beta interferons, have been used to treat the relapsing-remitting form of MS since 1995. But a new study from the UBC Hospital MS Clinic and Brain Research Centre published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, suggests the drugs arent preventing the progression of disability. However, the researchers warn that the studys results werent meant to suggest that MS patients stop taking the drugs as the medications are still effective at reducing relapse rates. Dr. Helen Tremlett, one of the studys authors, says the finding is just coming to light because in the past, not enough time had elapsed from when the drugs were approved to treat the disease. A total of 2,656 patients with MS were looked at. Of those, 868 were treated with the beta interferon drugs and were compared with both contemporary and historical cases of patients who went untreated. … Continue reading →

By Meg Tirrell - 2012-07-17T20:07:56Z The most commonly prescribed multiple sclerosis drugs, including those made by Biogen Idec Inc. (BIIB), Bayer AG (BAYN) and Merck KGaA, failed to slow disability progression in a long-term study that raises new questions on whether the treatments can achieve that goal. Researchers compared historical outcomes for MS patients in British Columbia to assess the use of interferon beta drugs. The results, published online today in the Journal of the American Medical Association, found the medicines didnt delay progress of the patients disability. It dampens somewhat the enthusiasm for so-called first- line therapies, said Ludwig Kappos of University Hospital in Basel, Switzerland, and author of an editorial that accompanied the study, in an e-mail today. MS is an autoimmune disease that affects about 2.1 million people worldwide and can lead to limb numbness, loss of vision and paralysis, according to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. The most common form, relapsing-remitting, is characterized by sporadic flare-ups followed by periods of inactivity. Avonex, made by Biogen, Bayers Betaseron and Merck KGaA (MRK)s Rebif generated $6.6 billion in 2011 revenue, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Called disease-modifying drugs, they have been shown to slow the frequency of … Continue reading →

CTVNews.ca Staff Published Tuesday, Jul. 17, 2012 1:44PM EDT Last Updated Tuesday, Jul. 17, 2012 4:46PM EDT Many multiple sclerosis patients have complained for years that commonly used MS drugs called beta interferons dont do much to stop the disease from getting worse. Now, new research appears to back them up. A study from researchers at the University of British Columbia and the UBC Hospital MS Clinic and Brain Research Centre found no strong evidence that the drugs had much of an impact on the long-term progression of the disease. Beta interferons are the most widely used treatment for relapse-remitting MS, which is the most common form of MS in Canada, affecting about 85 per cent of patients. In this form of the disease, new symptoms such as partial paralysis, numbness and lack of coordination can appear for or old ones can resurface or worsen. The relapses are followed by periods of weeks or months in which the patient fully or partially recovers. For the study, the team looked at the health records of 2,656 British Columbia patients between 1985 and 2008. They included those with MS who were treated with beta interferons, as well as untreated MS patients. The … Continue reading →

CTVNews.ca Staff Published Tuesday, Jul. 17, 2012 1:44PM EDT Last Updated Tuesday, Jul. 17, 2012 4:46PM EDT Many multiple sclerosis patients have complained for years that commonly used MS drugs called beta interferons dont do much to stop the disease from getting worse. Now, new research appears to back them up. A study from researchers at the University of British Columbia and the UBC Hospital MS Clinic and Brain Research Centre found no strong evidence that the drugs had much of an impact on the long-term progression of the disease. Beta interferons are the most widely used treatment for relapse-remitting MS, which is the most common form of MS in Canada, affecting about 85 per cent of patients. In this form of the disease, new symptoms such as partial paralysis, numbness and lack of coordination can appear for or old ones can resurface or worsen. The relapses are followed by periods of weeks or months in which the patient fully or partially recovers. For the study, the team looked at the health records of 2,656 British Columbia patients between 1985 and 2008. They included those with MS who were treated with beta interferons, as well as untreated MS patients. The … Continue reading →

Public release date: 17-Jul-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Brian Lin brian.lin@ubc.ca 604-822-2234 University of British Columbia Researchers with the UBC Hospital MS Clinic and Brain Research Centre at Vancouver Coastal Health and the University of British Columbia have published important data in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) about the impact of a common drug therapy on the progression of multiple sclerosis for people with the relapsingremitting form of the disease. The study, led by Drs. Helen Tremlett, Afsaneh Shirani, Joel Oger and others, shows no strong evidence that a group of drugs, beta interferons (-IFNs), prescribed to treat MS had a measurable impact on the long-term disability progression of the disease. The team examined the linked health records of 2656 BC patients between 1985 - 2008 in a retrospective cohort study, which means data from already collected sources were linked together in an anonymized form and studied. Data sources included the BC Ministry of Health, PharmaNet and the BC Multiple Sclerosis (BCMS) database, facilitated by Population Data BC. The study population included patients with MS who were treated with beta interferons (-IFNs), the most widely used treatment for relapsingremitting MS, as well as untreated … Continue reading →

ScienceDaily (July 17, 2012) Researchers with the UBC Hospital MS Clinic and Brain Research Centre at Vancouver Coastal Health and the University of British Columbia have published important data in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) about the impact of a common drug therapy on the progression of multiple sclerosis for people with the relapsing-remitting form of the disease. The study, led by Drs. Helen Tremlett, Afsaneh Shirani, Joel Oger and others, shows no strong evidence that a group of drugs, beta interferons (-IFNs), prescribed to treat MS had a measurable impact on the long-term disability progression of the disease. The team examined the linked health records of 2656 BC patients between 1985 -- 2008 in a retrospective cohort study, which means data from already collected sources were linked together in an anonymized form and studied. Data sources included the BC Ministry of Health, PharmaNet and the BC Multiple Sclerosis (BCMS) database, facilitated by Population Data BC. The study population included patients with MS who were treated with beta interferons (-IFNs), the most widely used treatment for relapsing-remitting MS, as well as untreated MS patients. The research team discovered that administration of -IFN was not associated with a … Continue reading →