This month, Tiziana Life Sciences (NASDAQ: TLSA) expects to start enrolling patients for a phase 2a trial of Foralumab, an immunomodulation therapy for Secondary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis (SPMS) that’s administered through the nose. The news marks a major milestone on the path to bring the clinical-stage company’s lead drug candidate to market.
MS Patients Have Few Effective Treatment Options, And SPMS Patients Have Even Fewer
The incurable disease involves recurring painful flare-ups that can be so severe people lose the ability to walk or move. This happens when the immune system attacks parts of the body’s own central nervous system, damaging nerve fibers and interrupting communication between the brain and the rest of the body.
The oral medications that are available are generally immune-suppressing drugs that can reduce relapse rates. But because they are typically a blanket suppressant of the immune system, they also generally come with harmful side effects and increased risk of infection. Moreover, they aren’t always effective for patients with non-active secondary progressive MS (SPMS), the more severe and difficult-to-treat form of the disease that Tiziana is developing Foralumab for.
When a flare-up strikes, the current standard of care for MS generally involves either intravenous corticosteroids ...