THE WALKING PILL - It Sounds Too Good to Be True. But Scientists Have Developed a Drug to Get MS Patients Mobile Again .../more at UK Daily Mail A NEW pill that makes it easier to walk could have a major impact on the treatment of multiple sclerosis.

The tablet contains a drug that helps damaged nerves communicate with each other. It has proved so successful in trials that scientists are now investigating whether it can also help treat spinal injuries.

Although there are drugs to reduce the rate of relapse in MS, nothing exists that can reverse the loss of movement or mobility...

TO COPE with the pain caused by MS, British patients are now able to use a cannabis-based drug called Sativex. The drug is a spray that is squirted into the mouth and contains two of the active ingredients in cannabis, tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol.

Several British patients have also travelled to Holland for a controversial stem cell treatment to get them mobile again. But some experts have condemned the therapy as unproved.

However, the new pill, taken twice a day, could get some patients moving again, researchers believe. It is based on a drug first investigated as a treatment in the early Nineties, but it was judged to be too toxic to use at the time.

Now U.S. drug firm Acorda Therapeutics, based in New York state, has developed a slow-release version that lets tiny quantities of the active drug seep into the central nervous system over several hours.
Latest trial results suggest it can have a dramatic impact.

More than 300 patients with walking disabilities were given either the active pill or a dummy one and then asked to complete a timed 25ft walk to test their speed and agility. The test was repeated over the course of the 14-week trial.

Results showed 35 per cent of those on Fampridine-SR showed improvements in walking, compared with just eight per cent in the placebo group.

Tests also revealed improvements in leg strength. However, patients on the drug reported more side-effects such as seizures, nausea and dizziness.

The drug works by stopping potassium leaking from cells. When myelin gets damaged, potassium can escape, weakening the electric current that helps to carry messages. The drug stops these leaks and helps electrical signals pass through areas of damage.

A spokesman for the Multiple Sclerosis Society said: 'These results look very encouraging.

The drug is dealing with symptoms that are a major concern for MS sufferers.' 'But we need to see more trial results before it can be recommended for use.' If it gets approved, the drug could be available for use in the UK in the next two to three years.....