Treatments for multiple sclerosis have long focused on slowing or stopping the acute disease process, which moves quickly and causes symptom relapses and visible changes on MRI scans. In recent years, however, researchers have defined a second, concurrent form of disease progression, dubbed “chronic smoldering,” a more gradual process in which damage to the brain and spinal cord builds up over time, leading to disability progression even as relapses and MRIs appear to be stable and under control.
Hoping to raise awareness of this relatively new discovery among MS patients is Sanofi, which has sold Aubagio for relapsing-remitting MS for over a decade and has multiple other treatments for the disease currently in development.
Sanofi recently launched a new website dedicated to educating “people living with MS, their care partners and the broader MS community” about the chronic smoldering process, Ellen Turpie, the drugmaker’s global senior director of neurology marketing, told Fierce Pharma Marketing in an interview.
The “Rediscover MS” site is therefore filled with information about what Turpie described as the “evolving science” around the drivers of the disease’s progression, adding, “Now that we know that there are two processes … we felt it was important to make sure that the MS community understood that and that we got that out into the community.”
Among the site’s resources is a video explaining the differences between the acute and chronic smoldering processes, graphics describing the biological mechanisms behind each process and a list of common symptoms associated with the disability progression caused by smoldering neuroinflammation.
Across all of those features and information, Turpie said Sanofi has three main goals. Two are aimed at encouraging an evolution in how the MS community defines core tenets of the disease: expanding their understanding of disability progression “to include not just the physical symptoms, but also the cognitive and emotional symptoms,” she said, and redefining stability, which currently focuses on controlling relapses and MRI activity, to incorporate disability progression, too.
Finally, Turpie said, the site is “really pushing for them to expect more from their care.”
“With this knowledge, they can have hope for the future, that there’s more to come,” she said. “It’s always helpful to be able to have that additional information, especially about a disease that you're living with chronically.”
She suggested that the effects of arming patients and their care teams with that knowledge could be manifold. For one, making people with MS and their healthcare providers more aware of the early signs of disability progression could enable “tiny treatment adjustments” where needed.
“Additionally, I think it helps with informed decision-making. By educating this community about this particular aspect, it allows them to be making informed decisions regarding their management plans or lifestyles, including treatment options,” Turpie continued. “An informed community can better advocate for themselves, advocate for more research and resources. So, by understanding this, they can get those resources to truly address the smoldering aspect of MS, ultimately benefiting the whole community.”
Though the site is already live and offering visitors several pages of information about chronic smoldering, it’s still a work in progress. Turpie described it as “pretty streamlined at this time,” with room to “evolve through the years.”
She’s currently working on gathering more information about future expansions to the site. Top of mind is the addition of more content focused on caregivers, who play an increasingly important role especially as a patient’s MS progresses.
“I think that’s going to be key, as well as providing more information on what we’re learning, and also gathering feedback from the community,” she said. “I’m partnering very closely with our advocacy partners to make sure that through the year, we get feedback to be able to ensure that what we’re putting out there is helpful to the community.”
Turpie said it was important for Sanofi to “get that education out there” even as the site’s evolution is ongoing since there currently isn’t an abundance of information available to the MS community about chronic smoldering.
“There’s a lot of education around what MS is and the different types of MS, but I think there’s only one other site that I’ve seen where they’ve talked about what they refer to as ‘smoldering MS,’” she said. “I feel like we’re bringing good value to the community about something that is not necessarily in the mainstream right now, understanding these two pathways.”
She added, “My hope is that by putting this out in the community, it’ll really help them and support them in getting a better sense of what they need to know to help manage their disease.”