Search This Blog

Thursday, November 10, 2011

New Multiple Sclerosis Therapy Promising in Early Trial


TUESDAY Nov. 1, 2011 -- Multiple sclerosis patients may eventually benefit from a novel treatment that takes aim at the abnormal behavior of a specific type of immune cell, preliminary research suggests.
The errant behavior of the cells in question -- known as "B cells" -- is viewed as key to the development of this chronic and disabling nervous system disease, commonly called MS.
The new therapy's potential is only in the early stages of exploration, cautions an international study team comprised of researchers from the United States, Canada, Switzerland and the Netherlands, in the report published in the Nov. 1 online edition of The Lancet.
But initial indications suggest that the new antibody drug, called ocrelizumab, successfully targets these renegade cells with hopeful results: a significant reduction in disease-related inflammatory brain lesions.
"Our findings show that ocrelizumab rapidly suppresses inflammatory activity," noted the study authors, led by Dr. Ludwig Kappos from the University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland, in a journal news release.
Describing the targeting of B cells as an "innovative therapeutic approach," Kappos and his colleagues reported that in testing among 218 patients, the drug's impact on lesions was "rapid and pronounced." What's more, to date the treatment appears to be safe.
The study authors noted that MS is a progressively debilitating disease that attacks an individual's central nervous system, disrupting the normal brain, spinal cord and optic nerve function.
A classic characteristic of the disease is inflammation, which takes the form of brain lesions.
The immune system's T cells have long been implicated in disease progression, but the notion that B cells may also play a major role is relatively new.
With this new potential target in mind, researchers configured ocrelizumab to specifically focus on a protein (CD20) found on the surface of certain B cells.
To test the drug, Kappos and his team recruited patients aged 18 to 55 seeking MS treatment in 79 centers in 20 countries.
The patients were divided into four groups, treated with: a low dose of ocrelizumab (600 milligrams); a high dose of ocrelizumab (2,000 mg); a well-known MS inflammation treatment known as "intramuscular interferon beta-1a"; or a sugar pill (placebo). After 24 weeks, some of the doses were adjusted.
The result: at week 24, all of the patients receiving either dose of ocrelizumab fared better in terms of lesion count than either the placebo or standard treatment groups.
The number of active lesions had dropped 89 percent more among the 600-mg group compared with those getting a placebo. Similarly, those in the 2,000-mg group experienced a 96 percent bigger drop in lesions. What's more, relapse rates were much lower among those taking the new drug, in contrast to those taking a placebo.
The investigators further noted that even eight months after treatment launch, no serious adverse effects were directly attributable to the new drug.
That said, Dr. Moses Rodriguez, a professor of neurology and immunology at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., disputed the premise that ocrelizumab is shaping up as anything new and innovative.
"In fact, there's nothing novel about this at all," he said. "There is another drug, called rituximab, that's been in early trials for MS for years. And all this new drug is attempting to do is replicate the same that rituximab already does. And I see no major advantage of this drug versus that older drug. It's not better or worse. It's the same," Rodriguez noted.
"So bottom-line, I would not sell this as a major breakthrough in MS," cautioned Rodriguez. "It's not."
Funding for the study was provided by F. Hoffmann-La Roche and Biogen Idec. Inc.
More information
For more on multiple sclerosis, visit the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

September First Time Generic Drug Approval

Levetiracetam Extended-Release Tablets 500 mg and 750 mg
Approved: September 12, 2011 - Actavis Elizabeth LLC; Par Pharmaceutical, Inc.; Apotex, Watson Laboratories, Inc.; Mutual Pharmaceutical Company, Inc.; Teva Pharmaceuticals USA
Generic for: Keppra XR



Levetiracetam is an anti-epileptic drug.
Levetiracetam is used to treat partial onset seizures in adults and children who are at least 4 years old.
Levetiracetam is also used to treat tonic-clonic seizures in adults and children who are at least 6 years old, and myoclonic seizures in adults and children who are at least 12 years old.
Do not stop taking levetiracetam without first talking to your doctor, even if you feel better. If you stop taking levetiracetam suddenly, you may have increased seizures. Tell your doctor if you have new or worsening seizures.
You may have thoughts about suicide while taking this medication. Your doctor will need to check you at regular visits. Do not miss any scheduled appointments.
Call your doctor at once if you have any new or worsening symptoms such as: mood or behavior changes, depression, anxiety, or if you feel agitated, hostile, restless, hyperactive (mentally or physically), or have thoughts about suicide or hurting yourself. Carry an ID card or wear a medical alert bracelet stating that you are taking levetiracetam, in case of emergency. Any doctor, dentist, or emergency medical care provider who treats you should know that you are taking levetiracetam. Levetiracetam can cause side effects that may impair your thinking or reactions. Be careful if you drive or do anything that requires you to be awake and alert.
You should not use this medication if you are allergic to levetiracetam.
Before using this medication, tell your doctor if you are allergic to any drugs, or if you have kidney disease. You may need a dose adjustment or special tests during treatment.
You may have thoughts about suicide while taking this medication. Tell your doctor if you have new or worsening depression or suicidal thoughts during the first several months of treatment, or whenever your dose is changed.
Your family or other caregivers should also be alert to changes in your mood or symptoms. Your doctor will need to check you at regular visits. Do not miss any scheduled appointments.
FDA pregnancy category C. It is not known whether levetiracetam is harmful to an unborn baby. Before taking this medication, tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant during treatment. Levetiracetam can pass into breast milk and may harm a nursing baby. Do not use this medication without telling your doctor if you are breast-feeding a baby. Do not give this medication to a child without the advice of a doctor.

Tuesday, November 8, 2011


TUESDAY Nov. 1, 2011 -- Age in itself should not be a factor in deciding whether blood cancer patients are candidates for stem cell transplantation, according to a new study.
Blood cancers include leukemialymphoma and myeloma.
For the study, researchers analyzed long-term outcomes among 372 blood cancer patients aged 60 to 75 who underwent a "mini-transplant," which is a "kinder, gentler" form of allogeneic (cells from another person) stem cell transplantation developed at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle.
The five-year rates of overall survival and disease progression-free survival among the patients were 35 percent and 32 percent, respectively. Comparable survival rates were seen when the patients were divided into three age groups -- 60 to 64, 65 to 69, and 70 to 75 -- suggesting that age plays a limited role in the success of the mini-transplant.
While a survival rate of one-third may seem low, all of the patients would have died within months if they didn't have the transplant, Dr. Mohamed Sorror, an assistant member of the Hutchinson Center's Clinical Research Division, noted in a news release from the Center.
The investigators also found that greater cancer aggressiveness and having a larger number of medical problems not linked to cancer ("comorbidities") were two factors that affected survival, regardless of age.
For example, the five-year survival for patients with less aggressive cancer and fewer comorbidities was 69 percent, compared with 23 percent for patients with more aggressive cancer and a large number of comorbidities, according to the report in the Nov. 2 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Conventional stem cell transplants are generally not performed on blood cancer patients older than 60 because high doses of total-body radiation and potent chemotherapy are used to prepare patients for transplantation.
However, the mini-transplant relies on the donor's immune cells to kill the cancer, and low-dose radiation and chemotherapy is used to suppress the immune system rather than destroy it.
More information
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more about blood cancers.