Novartis announced findings from an international multiple sclerosis (MS) registry and a US health claims data base which showed the real-world superiority of Gilenya (fingolimod) in reducing risks of relapses compared to standard therapies. These data confirm the positive results seen in clinical trials with Gilenya, and were presented at the ongoing 29th Congress of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS) in Copenhagen, Denmark.  

Relapses can make life unpredictable for patients with MS and they can potentially significantly advance an individual's level of disability. MS patients' clinical outcomes are regularly assessed and switching between disease-modifying therapies (DMTs), to reduce the rate or likelihood of a relapse, is a frequent treatment strategy.

"Controlling relapses and preventing disability are key treatment goals for patients with MS." said David Epstein, division head of Novartis Pharmaceuticals. "It is encouraging to see that the benefits of Gilenya, which is the only disease modifying treatment proven in clinical studies to have a superior relapse reduction compared to an active comparator, are now confirmed in the real-world setting."

The 'MSBase study', a global, longitudinal, observational registry for MS involving 60 centers in 26 countries and US administrative claims data from the 'IMS PharMetrics Plus Database' were interrogated for information on the impact on MS relapses of switching to either oral Gilenya or to one of the standard injectable therapies - an interferon or glatiramer acetate. Collectively, analysis of patient data from these large, real-world databases (416 patients from MSBase and 933 patients from the IMS PharMetrics Plus Database) showed that treatment with Gilenya reduced the annualized relapse rate and risk of relapse by approximately 50% compared to therapy with an interferon or glatiramer acetate treatment. They also showed that even amongst patients with MS who have a history of relapse, switching to Gilenya was associated with significant and clinically meaningful reductions in the number of relapses and the probability of experiencing a relapse compared to switching to an interferon or glatiramer acetate[.

Following first approvals in 2010, once daily oral Gilenya is now available in more than 75 countries and more than 71,000 patients have been treated in both the clinical trial and post-marketing settings with over 87,000 patient years of exposure.

While its exact cause is unknown, multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease of the central nervous system (CNS) that causes the body to turn against itself by mistaking normal cells for foreign cells. In MS the myelin sheath, the covering that protects nerve fibers, is damaged by the inflammation that occurs when the body's immune cells attack the nervous system. This neuro-inflammatory damage can occur in any area of the brain, optic nerve and spinal cord and cause a range of physical and mental problems including loss of muscle control and strength, vision, balance, sensation and mental function. Up to 2.5 million people worldwide are affected by MS most often younger people between the ages of 20 and 40.

Gilenya is the first oral therapy approved to treat relapsing forms of MS and the first in a new class of compounds called sphingosine 1-phosphate receptor modulators.  It is thought that Gilenya works in two ways against the destructive processes that drive MS disease progression by affecting not only the immune system to reduce inflammatory damage but also the CNS to promote neuroprotection and repair. Gilenya is thought to act by preventing lymphocytes (the cells that cause inflammation and damage in the CNS) from leaving the lymphoid tissues, thus reducing their entry into the central nervous system and potential for damage. Gilenya is also able to cross the blood-brain barrier and act on the neurodegeneration process in the brain and spinal cord.

Gilenya is the only oral MS treatment that provides early and long-term reduction in the rate of brain volume loss and high efficacy across all 4 disease activity measures (disability progression, relapses, MRI activity, brain volume loss). In clinical trials, ilenya exhibited a well-characterized safety profile and very good tolerability profile. The most common side effects were headache, hepatic enzymes increased, influenza, sinusitis, diarrhea, back pain, and cough. To date, more than 71,000 patients have been treated with Gilenya demonstrating a positive benefit-risk profile in clinical study and real-world settings.

Gilenya is licensed from Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corporation.