Staff in clinical research jobs at Genzyme have reported positive data from a new study of a promising developmental multiple sclerosis (MS) treatment.
Five-year data from the phase II CAMMS223 demonstrated that the new therapy alemtuzumab could potentially offer a number of advantages over Rebif, the clinically-approved therapy from Merck Serono.
Nearly two-thirds of patients administered with alemtuzumab remained free of clinically-active disease as much as four years after their last dose of the drug, as measured by the Expanded Disability Status Scale.
Genzyme's treatment also proved more effective than Rebif in helping to prevent relapses and disability accumulation over the course of the study.
Currently, two phase III trials of the drug are being conducted and will produce results later this year, allowing the manufacturer to apply for regulatory approval in early 2012.
This comes in the same month that Sanofi-aventis assumed control of the Genzyme group following the completion of its merger deal.