A world-first trial is investigating if stem cell transplantation could be used in patients with aggressive multiple sclerosis (MS) as a first-line treatment.
The study launched by the University of Sheffield and Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust will trial the pioneering therapy in patients with highly active MS which is not responding to drug treatment or as a first-line treatment for patients with the aggressive form of the inflammatory and neurodegenerative disease. The £2.3m StarMS study, which has already opened its doors to patients in Sheffield, is now being launched in multiple sites across the UK. It will be the first to compare how effectively autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (AHSCT) is when compared with four other highly effective drug treatments which have shown great promise in clinical trials (alemtuzumab, ocrelizumab, ofatumumab and cladribine). The trial will build on the results of the landmark MIST trial which was the first in the world to show that stem cell transplantation could reverse disability in patients with MS. This trial also showed that AHSCT worked better than the disease-modifying drugs available at the time in reducing the risk of disability accumulation in patients with the highly active form of the disease. However, advances in treatment options for patients with multiple sclerosis have been rapid since the initial trial, with the highly effective disease-modifying therapies alemtuzumab, ocrelizumab,
ofatumumab and cladribine showing that they can reduce disease activity and disability accumulation in clinical trials. The new StarMS trial, which is being funded through a National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and Medical Research Council (MRC) partnership, will pick up from where the MIST research trial left off, to compare the effectiveness and safety of AHSCT against these highly effective therapies. The trial will also determine the future place of AHSCT as a first-line treatment option for patients with ‘aggressive’ multiple sclerosis. When complete, the findings of the StarMS trial could revolutionise care for thousands of people who suffer with multiple sclerosis, the most common chronic inflammatory and neurodegenerative disease of the central nervous system in young adults which affects 100,000 people in the UK, and 2.3 million globally. The trial will run across 19 UK sites. Each participant will be randomly allocated to receive a stem cell transplant or one of the newest highly effective disease modifying therapies.
Complete story: https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/news/ms-...ld-first-trial
The study launched by the University of Sheffield and Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust will trial the pioneering therapy in patients with highly active MS which is not responding to drug treatment or as a first-line treatment for patients with the aggressive form of the inflammatory and neurodegenerative disease. The £2.3m StarMS study, which has already opened its doors to patients in Sheffield, is now being launched in multiple sites across the UK. It will be the first to compare how effectively autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (AHSCT) is when compared with four other highly effective drug treatments which have shown great promise in clinical trials (alemtuzumab, ocrelizumab, ofatumumab and cladribine). The trial will build on the results of the landmark MIST trial which was the first in the world to show that stem cell transplantation could reverse disability in patients with MS. This trial also showed that AHSCT worked better than the disease-modifying drugs available at the time in reducing the risk of disability accumulation in patients with the highly active form of the disease. However, advances in treatment options for patients with multiple sclerosis have been rapid since the initial trial, with the highly effective disease-modifying therapies alemtuzumab, ocrelizumab,
ofatumumab and cladribine showing that they can reduce disease activity and disability accumulation in clinical trials. The new StarMS trial, which is being funded through a National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and Medical Research Council (MRC) partnership, will pick up from where the MIST research trial left off, to compare the effectiveness and safety of AHSCT against these highly effective therapies. The trial will also determine the future place of AHSCT as a first-line treatment option for patients with ‘aggressive’ multiple sclerosis. When complete, the findings of the StarMS trial could revolutionise care for thousands of people who suffer with multiple sclerosis, the most common chronic inflammatory and neurodegenerative disease of the central nervous system in young adults which affects 100,000 people in the UK, and 2.3 million globally. The trial will run across 19 UK sites. Each participant will be randomly allocated to receive a stem cell transplant or one of the newest highly effective disease modifying therapies.
Complete story: https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/news/ms-...ld-first-trial