Sativex in real life..Most people feel benefit

Ferrè L, Nuara A, Pavan G, Radaelli M, Moiola L, Rodegher M, Colombo B, Keller Sarmiento IJ, Martinelli V, Leocani L, Martinelli Boneschi F, Comi G, Esposito F.Efficacy and safety of nabiximols on multiple sclerosis spasticity in a real-life Italian monocentric study. Neurol Sci. 2015. [Epub ahead of print]

Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients frequently suffer from limb spasticity and pain despite antispastic treatments. To investigate nabiximols efficacy and safety in a real-world monocentric Italian cohort, the following data were collected at baseline, week 4, 14 and 48: Ambulation Index (AI), 10-min walking test (10MWT), combined Modified Ashworth scale (cMAS), scores at numerical rating scale for spasticity (sNRS) and pain (pNRS). Responder status was defined as a ≥20 % reduction in sNRS after 4 weeks of treatment. 144 MS patients (123 progressive and 21 relapsing-remitting) complaining of moderate-to-severe spasticity (mean sNRS: 7.5) were included: 138 (95.8 %) completed the first month of therapy and were classified as follows-23.2 % were non-responders, 5.1 % were responders but discontinued treatment due to side effects, 71.7 % were responders with a mean 32 % reduction in sNRS (p < 0.001). In responders sNRS further decreased between 4 and 14 weeks (p = 0.03). Similarly, pNRS improvement was seen during the first month and between 4 and 14 weeks (p < 0.001 and p = 0.004, respectively). Moreover, at 4 weeks responders showed a significant (p < 0.05) improvement in cMAS, AI and 10MWT, which was maintained at 14 weeks. At 1-year follow-up, a benefit was still evident on spasticity and painful symptoms with a low drop-out rate. Confusion/ideomotor slowing, fatigue and dizziness were the most frequent side effects; no major adverse events were reported. Shorter disease duration at treatment start was associated with better response. This real-world study confirms nabiximols efficacy and safety in the treatment of MS-related spasticity and pain, which is maintained up to 48 weeks.

You can all read and can see that in real life sativex is giving some benefit in the majority of people who use it. The interesting thing is that a positive effect was seen in the Ashworth Scale  (physician based scale) where this outcome failed to be affected in early trials. Why is is not universally available in the UK?

The answer is postcode and cost and NICE, as they consider it not cost effective. It is always going to difficult for expensive symptom control drugs to make it through NICE. However there haven't been new symptom modifying drugs for decades and this is unlikely to change if companies think that they can't make money out of them.

CoI. We are developing competing molecules

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