Biopharmaceutical company MediciNova Inc. said Tuesday a mid-stage trial of its multiple sclerosis treatment, MN-166, showed a significant increase in the proportion of patients taking the drug who were relapse-free over the first 12 months, compared with those taking a placebo.
In addition, data showed patients who did relapse did so significantly later if they took MN-166, rather than the placebo. The two-year study of 297 patients also showed there was a significant reduction in brain volume loss in patients treated with the drug.
The independent Data Safety Monitoring Board recommended that the trial continue beyond the first year of treatment without modification.
Multiple sclerosis is an inflammatory disease of the central nervous system, affecting about 250,000 to 350,000 people in the U.S. The most obvious effect of MS is the progressive loss of muscle control, but multiple brain and nervous system functions also are affected. There is currently no cure for the disease.
Relapsing-remitting MS, which is the most common type of the disease, affects about 65 percent of MS patients, according to a Cognos study published by Decision Resources Inc.
