Opinion|Videos|January 7, 2025
Managing Disease Progression in MS: Changing Treatments and Clinician Advice
Author(s)Gabriel Pardo, MD, FAAN, Martin Belkin, DO
Key Takeaways
- Disease progression on high-efficacy therapy necessitates strategic treatment modification, considering both within-class switches and different mechanisms of action based on patient response.
- Switching within the same class may be appropriate for partial response or tolerability issues, while a different mechanism is advised for complete lack of efficacy.
Panelists discuss how in multiple sclerosis (MS) treatment, clinicians must strategically evaluate disease progression, considering within-class or mechanism-of-action switches. Comprehensive monitoring, personalized approaches, and proactive management are crucial for optimizing patient outcomes and minimizing long-term neurological disability.
Advertisement
Video content above is prompted by the following:
- In cases where a patient continues to show disease progression on a high-efficacy therapy, what is your approach to changing treatment? When would you recommend switching within class and when to a different mechanism of action?
- In closing, what advice would you like to share with clinicians who are taking care of patients with MS?
Advertisement
Related to this article
Jeffrey Cohen, MD, professor of neurology and staff physician at the Cleveland Clinic Mellen Center for Multiple Sclerosis, discusses interim BREAKFREE-2 findings for zola-cel, a CD19-directed CAR T cell therapy, in relapsing and progressive MS.
Kim Henriksen, PhD, discusses research evaluating blood-based biomarkers of blood-brain barrier remodeling and immune cell activity in multiple sclerosis, including their potential to track treatment responses and inform future biomarker development.
Terrie Livingston, PharmD, vice president of medical affairs at Octave Bioscience, discussed the evolving role of blood-based biomarkers in multiple sclerosis care.
New biomarker data showed smaller post-onset increases in plasma neurofilament light chain and glial fibrillary acidic protein with privosegtor added to steroids in patients with acute optic neuritis.
Phase 3 data show the oral BTK inhibitor reduced annualized relapse rate by 35.2% and 31.2% vs teriflunomide, with no liver safety signal or Hy's Law cases.
Servier reported that sevasemten did not meet its primary or secondary endpoints in the pivotal GRAND CANYON trial for Becker muscular dystrophy.
QurAlis reported interim ANQUR trial results showing target engagement, a biomarker signal, and a trend toward slower functional decline with QRL-201 in ALS.
An epileptologist at Cleveland Clinic discussed findings from a recently published study of lifestyle interventions in epilepsy and why these approaches should complement rather than replace antiseizure medications.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Trending on NeurologyLive - Clinical Neurology News and Neurology Expert Insights
1
Final Results Reported for EPISOD1 Trial of SOD1-ALS Gene Therapy AMT-162
2
Recapping the 2026 STARS Conference and the Push for Interdisciplinary Stuttering Care: Gerald Maguire, MD
3
FDA Grants Priority Review to Huntington Disease Gene Therapy BLA
4
PREVAiLS Phase 3 Trial Evaluates Pridopidine in Early, Rapidly Progressive ALS
5