This news has been read 173 times!
LONDON, July 14: In a groundbreaking development, thousands of people suffering from multiple sclerosis (MS) in England are set to benefit from a new 10-minute injection that drastically reduces the time spent in hospitals for treatment by more than 90%.
Currently, patients undergoing treatment with the drug ocrelizumab (Ocrevus) require lengthy intravenous infusions twice a year, each session lasting four to five hours or more. Now, thanks to approval from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), patients will receive the same drug via a quick jab just twice annually, courtesy of the NHS.
NHS England anticipates being among the first healthcare systems globally to introduce this expedited treatment option, with implementation scheduled within weeks. Professor Sir Stephen Powis, NHS England’s medical director, highlighted the transformative impact of this innovation: “This new injection will drastically cut the time that regular treatment takes for those living with multiple sclerosis, meaning that thousands of patients can spend less time in hospital while helping free up clinicians’ time to see more patients as well as vital capacity on wards.”
Ocrelizumab targets a specific type of immune cell known as B cells, mitigating the body’s immune response by preventing these cells from attacking and damaging myelin—a protective layer around nerves, crucial in MS patients where it becomes compromised.
Approximately 9,000 MS patients in England currently receive ocrelizumab infusions to manage their active relapsing or primary progressive MS. Clinical trials have validated the effectiveness of the new injection, showing comparable outcomes to intravenous treatment, with 97% of patients experiencing no relapses and no new brain lesions in nearly a year.
Nin Sambhi, 39, diagnosed with relapsing MS in 2022, expressed enthusiasm: “It’s great to hear that this new ocrelizumab injection has been approved. Ocrelizumab is working well for me right now and making me hopeful for a better and healthier future, but to be able to have an injection would be so much more convenient for me.”
Manufactured by Roche, ocrelizumab initially gained approval from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in 2018 for relapsing-remitting MS, followed by approval for primary progressive MS in 2019.
Ceri Smith, head of policy at the MS Society, welcomed the new treatment option: “Over 150,000 people live with MS in the UK, and many of them rely on disease-modifying treatments like ocrelizumab to help reduce MS relapses. This method will expand the choices available to many MS patients and will mean more people can receive this treatment in a way that suits them.”
The introduction of the 10-minute injection marks a significant advancement in MS care, promising enhanced convenience and improved quality of life for patients across England.
This news has been read 173 times!