GW prices Sativex for MS pain

GW Pharmaceuticals wasted no time preparing to launch its newly-approved Sativex for MS patients. The UK developer says that it will sell the cannabis-based pain therapy for $14 a day. The Wall Street Journal notes that the approval in Britain should also be an encouragement to developers in the country, which have faced some hard times recently. GW spent 11 years developing Sativex and has high hopes for an eventual U.S. approval for cancer pain....

Stem cell study shows early promise for MS

A University of Bristol study has demonstrated that stem cell therapy could slow the progression of multiple sclerosis, lending hope to patients with the disease. In the trial, six MS subjects were injected with their own PCT stem cells collected from their bone marrow. Researchers then injected the stem cells into each patient's blood stream. Results from the trial indicate that the treatment could stabilize the disease. But researchers were quick to point out that the...

Positive MS data may thwart Icahn’s plans for Genzyme

Follow-up data from a Phase II trial of Campath (alemtuzumab) for multiple sclerosis revealed that about 71 percent of patients remain free the disease for up to three years after receiving their last dose of the drug. The study compared Campath to the Merck KGaA's approved MS therapy Rebif in early, active, relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis patients who had received no prior therapy. Genzyme presented the positive data at the American Academy of Neurology annual...

Novartis unveils more positive data for oral MS drug Gilenia

Novartis is touting more positive data for Gilenia (FTY720), the company's late-stage oral multiple sclerosis drug. The data, which were presented at the American Academy of Neurology meeting, demonstrated that Gilenia prevented relapse in 62 percent of treatment-naïve patients, while relapse rates were reduced by 44 percent in those who'd already received other treatments. In addition, at two years, Gilenia delayed the progression of disability by 30 percent for...

Acorda MS drug approval sparks buyout buzz

Late Friday afternoon regulators at the FDA approved Acorda's multiple sclerosis drug Ampyra based on data demonstrating that patients taking dalfampridine were able to walk faster than a control group. And this is the first time the FDA has approved a therapy for improving walking...