Novartis MS drug scores positive late-stage trial result

pharmafile | April 21, 2015 | News story | Research and Development, Sales and Marketing MS, Novartis, fingolimod, gilenya, multiple sclerosis 

People with some of the most common forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) who are treated with Gilenya are less likely to show evidence of disease activity, a Novartis study shows.

The firm used a new combined outcome measure to look at disease activity in a sub-group analysis of two Phase III trials, FREEDOMS and FREEDOMSII. The trials compared patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) who had high disease activity despite having already used a disease-modifying therapy. Patients were given either Gilenya (fingolimod) or a placebo.

The sub-group analysis looked at disease activity over two years, using the NED4 measure – achieved when a patient has no relapses, no new brain lesions, no MS-related loss of brain volume and no disability progression. The new analysis was presented at the American Academy of Neurology conference in Washington DC.

This outcome has been used to measure the activity of other diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, but this is the first time it has been used in this patient group. Novartis says the measure “is a new treatment goal that reflects a shift in expectations to a more complete response,” and NEDA is being proposed by some researchers as a real-world treatment goal in RRMS.

However, others propose treatment goals should target relapses and new MRI lesions separately from measures of disability progression.

People who were treated with Gilenya were six times more likely to achieve no evidence of disease activity than those who took a placebo. Some 20.5% of patients treated with Gilenya achieved this status, compared to 3.9% in the placebo group.

Another analysis from the entire Phase III TRANSFORMS study showed that after one year of treatment, patients on Gilenya were twice as likely to achieve NEDA4 compared to patients given Biogen’s Avonex (interferon beta-1a injections).

“NEDA4 is a major step forward in assessing relapsing MS progression, helping physicians to develop effective disease management and treatment strategies for their patients,” says Vasant Narasimhan, global head of development at Novartis.

“These data confirm that Gilenya’s high efficacy across the four key measures is maintained in previously-treated highly-active relapsing MS, and underscores the important role of Gilenya in the treatment of these patients.”

According to Professor Gavin Giovannoni, chair of neurology at Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry: “The realisation that multiple sclerosis affects cognition very early on in the course of the disease, before physical disability becomes apparent, stresses the importance of treatments that don’t just reduce relapses and new lesion formation on MRI but which also reduce accelerated brain volume loss.

“It is therefore very reassuring to note that people with highly-active relapsing-remitting MS are nearly six times more likely to achieve NEDA4 on fingolimod compared to placebo.”

Lilian Anekwe

Related Content

Novartis shares new data about Fabhalta for IgAN treatment

Novartis has announced new results from a pre-specified interim analysis of its phase 3 APPLAUSE-IgAN …

chuttersnap-oijvdm3zx4i-unsplash

Novartis shares new data for Zolgensma in children with SMA

Novartis has announced new data to continue the support of the clinical benefits of Zolgensma …

Novartis to acquire MorphoSys AG for €2.7bn

Novartis has announced that it has entered an agreement to acquire MorphoSys AG for €2.7bn, …

Latest content