INFORMATION

[roxy118]

Hi! can anyone give me information on active vs non active secondary progressive. Can someone start a new medication for non active sp? Roxy

[pennstater]

The NMSS provides a definition for both types of secondary progressive MS.

https://www.nationalmssociety.org/Wh...progressive-MS
This is a link to FAQs about SPMS:

https://www.nationalmssociety.org/Wh...nly-medication

I can't answer the question on medications for non-active SPMS. Truly best to review with your Neuro, but in the interim, hopefully someone with more knowledge of progressive treatment will come along.

[KoKo]

Hey Roxy!

The only FDA approved medication for non-active SPMS (no relapses or no evidence of inflammatory activity on MRI) is called Mitoxantrone (formerly known as Novantrone).

It's a potent drug, also used as a cancer treatment.

Also, there is a nasal spray treatment (not FDA approved yet for the public) for non-active SPMS called Foralumab which is currently in trials.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cleared a special access program at Harvard Medical School’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Massachusetts to test Foralumab in a small number of patients.

This treatment appears to be very effective, with clinical improvements seen in patients.

Here is an excerpt from an article on Foralumab:

Second SPMS Patient Given Foralumab Continues to Improve, Findings are consistent with those seen in the first non-active SPMS patient.

Six months of treatment with foralumab nasal spray led to significant functional improvements in the second patient with non-active secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS) who received treatment under a single-patient expanded access program.

Findings from this patient have been generally consistent with those seen in the first non-active SPMS patient, who also experienced clinical improvement after six months of treatment.

Non-active SPMS is a secondary form of disease in which patients experience continuous disability progression in the absence of relapses. SPMS has a significant unmet need for effective treatments; mitoxantrone is the only approved disease-modifying treatment approved in the U.S. for this type of MS.

Based on data from the first two patients, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cleared a special access program at Harvard Medical School’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Massachusetts to test foralumab in up to eight more patients.

Improvements Continue in Second SPMS Patient Given Foralumab | Multiple Sclerosis News Today

This one looks promising! And it's a nasal spray!