Here's an article about 3 meds in the pipeline -- It's an interesting article about 3 small pharma companies:

Apitope Technology: MS vaccine shows promise in Phase I/IIa

In addition to ATX-MS-1467, the current MS pipeline consists of two further vaccines which are in Phase II development; NeuroVax (Orchestra Therapeutics) and Tovaxin (Opexa Pharmaceuticals).


http://www.pharmaceutical-business-r...A-B8AB25D54E1A

Thanks, FG, they look promising, if they can get the needed funds. I wish they had some of that energy for us SP/PP folks.

Since I am in one of those small company clinical trials, I was a little discouraged. The comment about not having the funding to bring these vaccines to market once they go through the trials is disheartening. Not enough so that I will not continue, but I certainly hope that once the vaccine has gone through all these clinical trials and proves to be helpful to us, I sure hope that the company is able to take it to market!

And will we be able to afford them?

Look at the cost of Avonez, Copazone and Rebif. These drugs are not really proved to cure anything, just to delay relapses. I can't imagine the cost of a "cure" or a "vaccine". Pharm companies are making billions off of us...do they really want to "cure" or prevent MS? By helping us, they would lose the billions they depend on. I'm all for it, but highly sceptical.

Gee James, I didn't mean to post this to cause such an angry response.

This is not a cure...just another tool in the choice tool box.

So sorry, I didn't mean to come across as angry at all. In fact, just the opposite. I'm all for new improved treatments. It's just that I don't like the Pharm companies much. I realize they need large amounts of money to continue research, but at the same time I'm tired of the huge costs to those of us who need these drugs when we know as fact that we could get them outside the USA for a lot less. Mix in the fact that many who are stuck in the middle have zero access to them too (if your insured, good. If your on welfare, good. If your the working poor, your screwed)

I do wonder, if and when they come out with a drug that will at least halt the progression of MS completely how much this drug(s) will cost. One year of an ABC runs about $15,000 or more. So what would an average Joe like me have to pay for it (cure)? It's a very sad fact that I, and many, many like me will have to live the rest of our lives with MS simply because we cannot afford the drug(s).

I also can't help thinking that just one person on a ABC is spending $15,000 a year, and that if that person were to take a drug that would permanately halt MS, the drug company is out the $15K for the rest of that persons life???
Times this by hundreds of thousands of people, and were talking Billions of dollars lost to the Pharms.

I wonder how much money the Pharms' spend on TV advertizing trying to convince us to take this pill or that pill (ED as an example..Don't forget to ask your Doctor about...?). I can't help but think that the money could be used more effectively.

Sorry if you thought I replied as angry, I'm not really. I consider myself a logical person and I try not to let emotions outweigh facts.

Yeah, James, that's the real catch-22 in all this. Sure, treatments are out there, but for some, utterly unavailable. It's frustrating as can be, I'm still trying to get on Tysabri and my second insurance company is now giving me a whole new runaround. I can't win.

Thanks for sharing this information and continuing on with the study.

They are doing a clinical trial on Ty for SPMS/PPMS. I can't believe that you are having problems with your secondary insurance (never mind, yes I can!) If your primary has approved it...what's the problem? I dislike insurance companies...who ever gave them the license to practice medicine? But you've seen my rants about insurance companies so I won't repeat that!

I hope you win.

You have pretty much hit the nail on the head when it comes to developing drugs for MS. As another poster wrote, often we see the small company finding some success and then having to sell part of their drug's "rights" to a much larger company in order to develop it. Just look at Elan going to bed with Biogen in order to develop Tysabri.

While it is very true that the cost of a drug's development is huge, it makes you wonder why medications such as Avonex, Betaseron and Copaxone cost up to $ 18000.00 a year for each patient when they have been around for 15 years or more!! There is a decent profit and then there is greed. Then again, that's what our society is all about!

Harry