The NeuroMedical Center to Offer FIRST Drug to Treat Severe Multiple Sclerosis

MS Specialist, Dr. April Erwin, applauds the approval of OCREVUS ® for Primary Progressive Form of Multiple Sclerosis

(Baton Rouge, La.) The NeuroMedical Center is excited to announce that it will soon offer a breakthrough treatment for adult patients with the most aggressive, and debilitating form of multiple sclerosis (MS). OCREVUS® by Genentech is the FIRST AND ONLY disease-modifying therapy approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS).   On, March 28, 2017, OCREVUS® was also approved for the more common relapse-remitting MS (RRMS), providing the potential to significantly improve the lives of more than 400,000 Americans currently living with the disease.

Until now, no FDA-approved treatment has been available to the primary progressive MS community. PPMS is marked by a gradual worsening of neurological symptoms, especially difficulty walking, and accounts for between 10 percent and 15 percent of MS diagnoses. Relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) is the most common form of the disease and is characterized by inflammatory attacks that trigger such early symptoms as vision problems, tingling in the feet, weakness, and muddled thinking. 85 percent of people with MS are initially diagnosed with RRMS.

Researchers say OCREVUS® works by reducing the immune system’s assault on the body’s own neurons by selectively targeting specific types of cells found in the immune system. In late phase clinical studies, researchers say OCREVUS® demonstrated superior efficacy on the three major markers of disease activity by reducing relapses per year by nearly half for patients diagnosed with RRMS. In patients with PPMS, studies showed OCREVUS® significantly slowed disability progression and reduced signs of disease activity.

“Saying this is a huge day for people everywhere affected by MS is an understatement,” says NeuroMedical Center Neurologist and MS Specialist, Dr. April A. Erwin. “The release date of OCREVUS® is such a landmark event that we will reference it for years to come as a pivotal moment on the timeline of the worldwide fight against Multiple Sclerosis.” Dr. April Erwin will serve as a lead investigator in an extension trial that will test OCREVUS® in newly diagnosed MS patients who have never been on MS medication, further advancing a new era for this highly disabling, chronic, and currently incurable disease.

OCREVUS® will be available to patients at The NeuroMedical Center and throughout the U.S. within two weeks. Genentech pledges to help people prescribed OCREVUS® gain access to their medicine by working with patients to minimize barriers to access and reimbursement. Patients can call 1-844-OCREVUS for more information.

About Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic, unpredictable disease that attacks the central nervous system and disrupts the flow of information within the brain and between the brain and body. MS affects an estimated 400,000 people in the U.S., for which there is currently no cure. MS most patients are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, making the disease the leading cause of non-traumatic disability in younger adults.

About Genentech

Founded 40 years ago, Genentech is a leading biotechnology company that discovers, develops, manufactures and commercializes medicines to treat patients with serious or life-threatening medical conditions.

Categorised in: Clinic News, NMC News, Uncategorized