NHS patients to get new MS drug
- Treatment not only stops the disease from advancing but may help patients recover from disability
- Scientists have spent 25 years developing treatment at Cambridge
- Alemtuzumab infusion is given in two short courses over two years
- Despite costing £56,000, NICE has ruled treatment is cost-effective
A new treatment for Multiple Sclerosis not only stops the disease from advancing but may help patients recover from disability.
Remarkable results for the drug alemtuzumab mean it has been approved for use on the NHS and is now available in England.
Originally a pioneering cancer therapy, Cambridge University scientists have spent almost 25 years developing it as a treatment for MS sufferers.
Trials involving more than 1,500 patients show treatment led to fewer relapses compared with multiple jabs of the treatment beta interferon each week, cutting further disability and even allowing some existing damage to recover.
Alemtuzumab is given in two short courses with one infusion a day for five days during the first year and three days during the second year followed by regular monitoring.
Despite the £56,000 price tag, the drug has got the go-ahead as cost-effective from the rationing watchdog the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice).
Professor Alastair Compston, Professor of Neurology and the Head of the Department of Clinical Neurosciences at the University of Cambridge, said the drug worked in the early stages of MS, but did not help patients with advanced disease.
Multiple Sclerosis affects almost 100,000 Britons, causing attacks or relapses that may lead to progressive loss of physical skills, sensation, vision, bladder control, and intellectual abilities.
About 2,500 people are diagnosed each year, with four out of five having relapsing-remitting MS – many of them in their 20s and 30s.
Prof Compston said more than half of patients with this type of MS could benefit.
He said ‘This is a real step forward and brings to a conclusion work involving a number of research groups in Cambridge, stretching back to 1991.
‘The decision from Nice now provides an opportunity for neurologists to offer a highly effective therapy for patients with multiple sclerosis early in the course of their illness.’
Alemtuzumab, marketed as Lemtrada by makers Genzyme, was being used in chronic lymphocytic leukaemia when Prof Compston identified its potential for treating MS.
Patients take the treatment, which took 25 years to develop, in two doses over two years
It works by destroying a key class of immune cells that are attacking the body’ s healthy nerve cells and then rebooting the immune system so it no longer turns on itself.
A main side effect is patients can develop other autoimmune diseases as the immune system gradually recovers following exposure to the drug.
These include thyroid problems and a low blood platelet count that can rarely can prove fatal. Platelets are cells that circulate in the blood and clot to keep us from bleeding.
The complications can be easily treated if promptly recognised which makes monthly blood tests essential, said Prof Compston.
‘This drug offers a bright future but it is coloured by the risk.
‘It’s not a cure and it doesn’t work for everyone but it can stabilise the disease for a long time. Patients are less disabled, they can look after their families and the societal savings are considerable’ he added.
‘This drug offers a bright future but it is coloured by the risk’
– Professor Compston at University of Cambridge
Unlike most treatments newly approved for NHS use, patients don’t have to try other drugs first and more than two courses of treatment may be offered.
Prof Compston said ‘Twenty years ago when a young person was diagnosed, I’d have to say I’m sorry to tell you that you do have MS – we’ll do our best to look after you but there are limited treatments.
‘Today this drug may well be suitable for 50 to 60 per cent of early cases.’
Nick Rijke, Director for Policy & Research at the MS Society, said it was ‘a major step forward’.
He said ‘This drug has taken decades to develop, and we applaud the team at Cambridge for all their work in making it a reality.
‘While it’s not without risk, it’s proven to be a highly effective medicine for people with relapsing remitting MS and we look forward to seeing it made available to those who could benefit.’
Amy Bowen, of the MS Trust said ‘This provides people with MS with an important treatment option to consider in partnership with their MS specialists.’
