Multiple Sclerosis Emerging Therapies Collaborative

We are proud to announce the launch of the Multiple Sclerosis Emerging Therapies Collaborative. The Collaborative – which includes the members of the MS Coalition, the American Academy of Neurology, and the VA Multiple Sclerosis Centers of Excellence East and West – has as its mission: To develop and disseminate timely, evidence-based resources to persons affected by multiple sclerosis and health care professionals, in order to  promote optimal, individualized treatment of the disease by facilitating effective communication and medical decision-making.

The emergence of new MS therapies is both exciting and challenging for people living with MS, the clinicians who treat them, and the organizations that serve them. The groups that form this Collaborative are looking to speak with a single voice in an effort to promote understanding and reduce confusion within the MS community concerning newly emerging MS therapies.

The Collaborative has established a dedicated, rapid-response website ( http://www.ms-coalition.org/emergingtherapies) that will present downloadable information sheets for professional and lay readers about each newly-approved treatment. The information sheets, which include the known benefits and risks of each treatment as well as answers to commonly-asked questions, are written to complement one another in order to promote clinician-patient communication. Users can direct questions to emergingtherapies@ms-coalition.org. The fingolimod (Gilenya) information is now available on the site, and the Collaborative looks forward to adding additional resources in the near future.

Read more about the groups participating in this exciting new venture.