There was more good news from Elan on its multiple sclerosis drug Tysabri. The company said today that new data show the drug has a sustained effect on relapse rates in MS patients treated for up to three years.
The data were presented at the Congress of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in MS in Madrid and were part of long-term follow-up of Tysabri clinical trial patients.
About 1,900 patients worldwide took part in the trials. 250 of these stayed on Tysabri monotherapy for nearly three years.
'The efficacy benefit of Tysabri when considered with the management of its known risks, offers an important therapeutic option for many patients living with the debilitating effects of MS,' commented Paul O'Connor, from St Michael's Hospital in Toronto, lead investigator of the study.
Tysabri returned to the US and European markets in June after it was approved by the US Food & Drug Administration, subject to a number of conditions.
The drug had been withdrawn in February 2005 after the deaths of two patients involved in trials of the drug from a rare brain disease, PML.
Elan shares closed unchanged at €12.20 in Dublin.
