Identification of targets and new developments in the treatment of multiple sclerosis – focus on cladribine

Review

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Authors: Clemens Warnke, Heinz Wiendl, Hans-Peter Hartung, et al

Published Date June 2010 Volume 2010:4 Pages 117 - 126

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.2147/DDDT.S6627

Clemens Warnke¹, Heinz Wiendl², Hans-Peter Hartung¹, Olaf Stüve³, Bernd C Kieseier¹

¹Department of Neurology, Heinrich-Heine University Düsseldorf, Germany; ²Department of Neurology – Inflammatory Disorders of the Nervous System and Neurooncology, University of Münster, Germany; ³Department of Neurology, Dallas VA Medical Center and UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas, USA

Abstract: Orally available disease-modifying drugs for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS) represent an unmet need for this chronic and debilitating disease. Among 5 currently investigated drugs at phase 3 clinical stage, promising efficacy data for fingolimod and oral cladribine have recently been published. However, benefits need to be weighed against the risks to define the role of these compounds within current treatment regimens. In this review, data on the efficacy of a promising compound, oral cladribine, are discussed and balanced with known and anticipated risks in a postmarketing era, and finally gives an outlook on the potential place of this drug in treatment algorithms for MS in the future.

Keywords: immunosuppressant, oral drugs, risk–benefit, safety

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