Alemtuzumab

New research into Alemtuzumab a potential new MS drug has found that it significantly reduces the number of attacks experienced by people with relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS). This latest study of the drug, led by researchers from the University of Cambridge, has found that it not only stops MS from advancing in those with RRMS but it can also restore lost function caused by the disease.

Published in October, the results found that Alemtuzumab reduces the number of attacks experienced by those with RRMS by 74pc over and above that achieved with interferon beta-1a, one of the most effective therapies for similar cases of MS. Most importantly, it also reduces the risk of sustained accumulation of disability by 71pc compared to interferon beta-1a.

The research showed that many people were less disabled after three years than at the beginning of the study. Indeed, according to researchers at Cambridge findings suggest that Alemtuzumab may allow damaged brain tissue to repair. However, as the study was a Phase 2 clinical trial, additional research will need to be conducted before the drug is considered for approval in the treatment of MS.

"Alemtuzumab is the most promising experimental drug for the treatment of MS, and we are hopeful that the Phase 3 trials will confirm that it can both stabilise and allow some recovery of what had previously been assumed to be irreversible disabilities," says the principal investigator Alastair Compston, Professor of Neurology and the Head of the Department of Clinical Neurosciences at the University of Cambridge.

Alemtuzumab works by destroying one population of white blood cell and, by shutting down the immune system, inhibits the damage to brain tissue that occurs in MS. The main side effect of treatment is that people can develop other autoimmune diseases. During the trial, 20pc of people treated with it developed an over- or under-active thyroid gland, while 3pc developed a low platelet count and were vulnerable to bleeding. This complication led to one fatality during the trial.

The Phase 2 clinical study involved 334 patients who had been diagnosed with early-stage RRMS but had not previously been treated. The patients were followed for three years. Alemtuzumab treatment involves an infusion into the blood stream once a year. The drug was developed in Cambridge University in the UK and was initiatlly designed to treat a form of leukaemia.

Professor Compston spoke at MS Living our National convention in 2007. His presentation on Genetics, and Dr Scoldings presentation on stem cells are available on DVD and CD. Contact National Office on 01 6781600