Believe it or not, until 1993 there was no treatment available for multiple sclerosis (MS), with doctors turning to steroids to manage patients’ symptoms. But over the past several years, there's been an influx of new disease-modifying agents for MS, which affects more than two million people worldwide.
"When MS therapeutics were new, there was a tendency to start with lower potency medications and escalate to a higher potency agent only if the patient with MS continued to worsen,” Dr. Ellen Lathi, director of the Elliot Lewish Center in Wellesley, Mass., told Fox News. “Now most MS specialists believe that it is best to start more potent medication earlier in the disease in many patients to avoid future disability. We know that once disability occurs, we can do little about it; it is best to treat as aggressively as needed to avoid this disability.”
Jud Ehrbar, of Manhattan, was diagnosed with relapsing-remitting MS nearly 20 years ago. At the time, the now-47-year-old was a drummer in a band, and had started teaching math in public school. He eventually sacrificed both as his symptoms worsened over the years.
"When MS therapeutics were new, there was a tendency to start with lower potency medications and escalate to a higher potency agent only if the patient with MS continued to worsen,” Dr. Ellen Lathi, director of the Elliot Lewish Center in Wellesley, Mass., told Fox News. “Now most MS specialists believe that it is best to start more potent medication earlier in the disease in many patients to avoid future disability. We know that once disability occurs, we can do little about it; it is best to treat as aggressively as needed to avoid this disability.”
Jud Ehrbar, of Manhattan, was diagnosed with relapsing-remitting MS nearly 20 years ago. At the time, the now-47-year-old was a drummer in a band, and had started teaching math in public school. He eventually sacrificed both as his symptoms worsened over the years.