ALS

2023 - 2 - 8

Post cover — Image courtesy of "ALS News Today"

Phase 1/2 trial of imaging agent for neuroinflammation enrolls 1st... (ALS News Today)

A clinical trial at Stanford is testing the safety and and distribution of a tracing agent in detecting neuroinflammation in ALS patients.

[Phase 1/2 trial (NCT05395624)](https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT05395624?term=OP-801&draw=2&rank=1) is enrolling up to 26 healthy adults and ALS patients, ages 18-80, who will receive a single into-the-vein injection of 18F-OP-801 at Stanford University. The study will also look at whether 18F-OP-801 is found selectively in areas of neuroinflammation compared with non-inflamed brain tissue in ALS patients. “This approach, if successful, will reduce clinical risk by ensuring the correct amount of drug reaches the target to treat the neurological disease.” Because of an HD’s selectivity, these therapies have the potential to be low cost and safe at high doses, according to Ashvattha. This is possible because the agent is able to cross the protective brain-blood barrier, and it aims specifically to be taken up by reactive macrophages and microglia, the cells that primarily drive neuroinflammation in ALS. [amyotrophic lateral sclerosis](https://alsnewstoday.com/what-is-als/) (ALS) has enrolled its first patient.

Cigna restricts coverage of new ALS drug, deepening fears about ... (Healthcare Dive)

The health insurer's national formulary considers Amylyx Pharmaceuticals' Relyvrio to be “experimental, investigational or unproven for any use,” and now does ...

For many ALS patients and their caregivers, Relyvrio has become a vital source of hope. It also showed Relyvrio-treated patients lived a [median of about five months longer](https://www.fda.gov/media/157186/download). Delays to treatment are especially daunting in diseases that rapidly progress, as ALS does. Amylyx set Relyvrio’s price tag at [$158,000 per year](https://www.biopharmadive.com/news/amylyx-als-drug-price-relyvrio/633084/). “Right now, there is not enough clear clinical evidence to support Relyvrio’s effectiveness so it is not currently covered on our standard formularies.” Relyvrio was developed by the Massachusetts-based biotechnology company Amylyx Pharmaceuticals, and

Former Mediacorp news presenter Riz Sunawan dies aged 44 (CNA)

Mr Asri was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), the most common type of Motor Neurone Disease (MND), in October 2018. Patients with the terminal ...

We will miss him dearly," she said. The helper found Mr Asri unresponsive an hour later, and he was pronounced dead at 10.46am. Patients with the terminal illness live an average of two to five years.

Former TV journalist Riz Sunawan dies from ALS, remembered for ... (TODAY)

SINGAPORE — Ms Nursha Ismail recalled that whenever her friend and former colleague Mohammad Asri Sunawan was out in public, he was often approached by ...

“After the book launch, many people wrote to him. And after the news went on air, he told me to take pride in it, because it was my first byline piece.” “But more than that, we were a family in the newsroom. I'm deeply saddened by his death,” she said. Patients will progressively become immobilised as muscles that control movements of the body including swallowing, speech and breathing weaken. “He never turned anyone away.

Signed photo of Jalen Hurts stolen from ALS charity raffle in South ... (The Philadelphia Inquirer)

The event was held as part of the National 50 in 1 Bar Crawl for ALS to raise funds for several ALS foundations.

“We know she had to have shown it to someone,” Kaplan said. But Kaplan said he believes the piece can be found. “It’s not about the piece. In all, about 200 people, including several ALS patients, attended the event, Kaplan said. Those included the Saturday, a woman in her mid-20s with brown, curly hair picked the photo up off the charity table and walked out with it.

Cigna says it won't cover Amylyx's ALS drug Relyvrio (Medical Marketing and Media)

The insurance giant considers Relyvrio to be “experimental, investigational or unproven” for any use.

[voted 6-4](https://www.amylyx.com/media/amylyx-pharmaceuticals-announces-outcome-of-fda-advisory-committee-meeting-on-amx0035-for-the-treatment-of-als) in March 2022 against recommending the drug candidate’s approval, citing issues with the data from the Phase II trial. Still, the drug has been dogged by ongoing concerns over its clinical efficacy as well as its steep price point. [received approval](https://www.mmm-online.com/home/channel/amylyx-als-drug-relyvrio-wins-fda-nod-but-price-raises-eyebrows/) from the Food and Drug Administration for treating ALS. The insurance giant considers Relyvrio to be “experimental, investigational or unproven” for any use, including for ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. However, in early September, the panel reversed course and [voted 7-2 in favor](https://www.amylyx.com/media/amylyx-pharmaceuticals-announces-fda-advisory-committee-supports-approval-of-amx0035-for-the-treatment-of-als) of approving the third ALS drug on the market. [The ALS Association](https://www.als.org/) from money raised during the [ALS Ice Bucket Challenge](https://www.als.org/stories-news/ice-bucket-challenge-dramatically-accelerated-fight-against-als) that went viral in 2014.