New Drugs and Multiple Sclerosis

I have been in an uproar lately over:

- the enormous amount of time it is taking to get new drugs to market for multiple sclerosis
- participating in a drug trial often means giving up your current disease-modifying drug
- the lack of attention and focus in comparing the new drug to existing MS drugs in patients
- what I am calling carelessness on the drug companies behalf in using very limited MRI reports to evaluate the success of a drug

It could be that I am just now giving some attention to the drug research being done for multiple sclerosis or it could be that I am justifiably upset. Take rituximab, for example. During the testing they looked at 3 months of MRIs to evaluate its effect on MS patients. Twelve weeks is nothing in the life of disease progression!!

Plus, I am very concerned about side effects from this cancer drug. As we know, it takes a very intense drug to go up against cancer and so many of them have really strong side effects. I would be curious to see what types of side effects this drug has in cancer patients and multiple sclerosis clients.

I just want to say to the drug companies -- "we are rather intelligent, you know, what are you trying to slip by us?"