First case of PML that may be attributable to fingolimod

#MS Research # MSBlog PML after Gilenya

Reuters: Patient taking Novartis MS pill developed rare disease. Tue Jul 30, 2013 2:48pm IST

... A patient taking Novartis' multiple sclerosis pill Gilenya developed a rare and potentially fatal viral disease, the Swiss drugmaker said on Tuesday, an unexpected setback as it faces growing competition from new oral treatments....

.... Novartis said it had been informed of a case of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) in a patient who had been taking Gilenya for MS for seven months....

.... It said it was working with the reporting physician to understand all possible contributing factors, including those beyond treatment, given several atypical features of the case....

.... "The course of the underlying neurological disease was rapid with some atypical findings for MS on the MRI scans of the brain and spinal cord, as well as some unusual clinical features," Novartis said in a statement....

.... Novartis said all previously reported cases of PML among the approximately 71,000 patients treated with Gilenya thus far had been attributed to prior treatment with Biogen Idec's Tysabri, which bears a known risk of PML....

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