A new therapy that gives hope to those suffering from Multiple Sclerosis. This is the early treatment with thea molecule ocrelizumab, which reduces the progression of the disease. According to the data presented at the 30th congress of European Committee for the Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis – Ectrims 2022 he 77% of patients with MS in the relapsing-remitting form in the initial phase achieved the absence of disease activity in two years.
The new therapy reduces “relapses”
Using ocrelizumab as a first-line treatment reduces the number of relapses compared to using the drug in the second line. To date, over 250,000 people with MS are currently being treated with ocrelizumab.
The drug would be safe even in pregnancy: More than 2,000 women with MS are being treated with the molecule and the results do not suggest an increased risk of negative outcomes in pregnant women and their children.
As also underlined by Claudio Gasperini, director of the Unit of Neurology and Neurophysiopathology of the San Camillo-Forlanini hospital in Rome: “Therapy with ocrelizumab continues to demonstrate in people with relapsing and primarily progressive forms of multiple sclerosis a significant efficacy against the activity and disease progression, with a consistent long-term safety profile “.
Multiple Sclerosis mainly affects young people and women
Multiple sclerosis, a life-changing diagnosis, increasingly received at a young age. According to studies, the group most at risk of contracting the disease is between 20 and 40 years, although some are also highlighted in pediatric age.The autoimmune disease in Europe affects 1 million people, in Italy 133 thousand and is the second cause of disability after road accidents.
In addition to young people, it is women who are most likely to be affected: the reasons are still unknown, but it is likely that several factors are involved, such as hormonal and genetic differences, as well as social and environmental factors.
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Multiple sclerosis, what it is
MS is an autoimmune inflammatory degenerative disease of the central nervous system (CNS) in which immune cells attack myelin (the protective envelope that insulates nerve cells), damaging or destroying it, and causing inflammation.
This affects how the CNS processes information and communicates with the rest of the body, causing it neurological disorders typical of the disease.
MS causes progressive loss of muscle control but symptoms vary from person to person, the most common ones include fatigue, balance and walking problems, vision problems. With a prevalence in Italy of 215 cases per 100 thousand inhabitants, MS appears to have a very significant social impact. There is no definitive cure, which means that people live with the disease for many decades.
Sclerosis, the arrival from Sicily and the great help of Rieti
From relapse it often becomes progressive
80-85% of people with MS worldwide are initially diagnosed with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis in which periods of symptom relapse alternate with remission. The secondary progressive form, on the other hand, develops as an evolution of the relapsing-remitting form and is characterized by one persistent disability that progresses gradually over time. Unfortunately nearly half of people with the relapsing-remitting form develop within 10 years about a secondary progressive form. MS represents thedepending on the most common cause of neurological disability in young adults in Europe, preceded only by trauma caused by road accidents.