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New Treatment Approved for Multiple Sclerosis TORONTO, ON. -- September 8, 1997 -- A new class of medication is now available that can decrease the number of attacks on the nervous system from multiple sclerosis (MS). Health Canada has approved Copaxone(TM), (glatiramer acetate for injection, formerly known as Copolymer-1), which has proven its ability to reduce the frequency of relapses in people with relapsing-remitting MS. People who suffer from relapsing remitting MS experience relapses -- episodes of impaired vision, movement disorders -- followed by remission. These symptoms are caused by attacks on the myelin sheath, the covering which surrounds nerve fibres. Studies have indicated that Copaxone, manufactured by Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. of Israel for Teva Marion Partners Canada (TMPC) in Laval, Quebec, reduces the number of these episodes by an average of 29 percent. The drug, co-discovered by Israeli researcher Dr. Michael Sela, of the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, is thought to work by modifying the immune system in such a way as to decrease the body's attack on the myelin sheath. Without protection, the myelin sheath is damaged by MS, affecting nerve transmission in the brain. "Copaxone is important psychologically,'' said Dr. Kenneth Johnson, Professor and Chairman, Department of Neurology and Chief of the Division of Rehabilitation, University of Maryland Medical Centre in Baltimore and National Director of the Copaxone clinical trials. "It reduces the fear patients have that they will relapse at any time, severely disrupting their lives. Due to its safety profile, it also allows them to live without flu-like symptoms, fatigue and depression, thus making the drug well-tolerated for these patients.'' Sue Tarle understands the fear. She was diagnosed with MS at age 28 and gets a flare up at least once a year. One of Sue's worst relapses left her paralyzed from the neck down for six weeks. "Living with MS takes an incredible amount of courage and you hope... you pray... that the next attack will never come,'' she said. "I hope Copaxone will work for me. It offers a lot of promise.'' Carla Johnson was helped by Copaxone, which was approved in the United States in December 1996. "I can write and pick up small objects,'' Johnson said. "These are things I couldn't do when I had attacks. They are simple actions but I certainly don't take them for granted.'' The most commonly observed adverse reactions associated with the use of Copaxone are injection site reactions, flushing and chest pain. Approximately 10 percent of patients exposed to the drug in pre-marketing studies experienced a constellation of symptoms that could include flushing, chest pain, palpitations, anxiety, dyspnea, constriction of the throat and urticaria. These symptoms were invariably transient and self-limited. The cause of MS is unknown and usually strikes people between the ages of 20 and 40. Seventy-three per cent of MS patients are women. In Canada, there are approximately 50,000 people with MS, one of the highest rates in the world. E-mail this page to a friend or colleague! To print, use this version