The clinical trials are over! Following in the path of the FDA and the European Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use, Health Canada has approved Gilenya (also known as Fingolimod) - the first oral treatment (read: disease modifying drug) for Relapsing Remitting MS!
Yup - it's a capsule...taken once a day. Like other DMD's, it will prevent t-cells and b-cells from crossing the blood-brain barrier: it will keep the bad guys away from the central nervous system (keeping them sequestered in the lymph nodes instead).
And like Tysabri (the once-per-month IV infusion), Gilenya will not be a "first" treatment, as the risks are higher* when compared to beta-interferons or glatiramer acetate. High risk, potentially better reward...so try the injections first. Gilenya is approved for people who have tried more than one DMD, and are either unresponsive or intolerant to these treatments.
*during the trials, there were cases of skin cancer and inflammation of the brain
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Little bits about my life with MS
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