CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Oct. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Biogen, Inc. (Nasdaq: BGEN) said
today that it "enthusiastically supports" a recommendation by the National
Multiple Sclerosis Society (NMSS) urging people with relapsing forms of MS to
begin drug therapy as soon as possible after diagnosis to reduce future
disability and improve their quality of life. The recommendation, which
issued Friday, is the first time the NMSS has endorsed drug therapy.
Previously, the NMSS has refrained from making treatment recommendations.
Jim Tobin, Biogen's Chief Executive Officer, said, "Biogen enthusiastically
supports the NMSS in taking this important step forward on behalf of people
with MS. Studies have shown that early treatment with drugs like AVONEX(R)
(Interferon beta-1a) plays a significant role in the management of MS. We
urge patients who are not yet on therapy to talk to their physicians as soon
as possible about the benefits of drug therapy in the management of their
disease."
Biogen's AVONEX(R) is the world's leading treatment for patients with
relapsing forms of MS. It is the only drug approved both to slow the
progression of the disease and the frequency of exacerbations. More than
50,000 people with MS in more than 20 countries currently take AVONEX(R),
which is administered once a week by intramuscular injection.
Multiple sclerosis is a chronic, often disabling, disease of the central
nervous system, affecting more than 300,000 people in the U.S. alone. The
disease primarily affects women between the ages of 20 and 40. Symptoms may
be mild, such as numbness in the limbs, or severe, including paralysis or loss
of vision.
The most common side effects associated with AVONEX(R) treatment are flu- like
symptoms, muscle ache, fever, chills and asthenia (weakness). AVONEX(R)
should be used with caution in patients with depression and in patients with
seizure disorder. AVONEX(R) should not be used by pregnant women. Patients
with cardiac disease should be closely monitored. Routine periodic blood
chemistry and hematology tests are recommended during treatment with
AVONEX(R).
Biogen, Inc., headquartered in Cambridge, MA, is a biopharmaceutical company
principally engaged in discovering and developing drugs for human healthcare
through genetic engineering. The Company's revenues are generated from the
worldwide sales of AVONEX(R) (Interferon beta-1a) for treatment of relapsing
forms of multiple sclerosis, and from the worldwide sales by licensees of a
number of products, including alpha interferon, hepatitis B vaccines and
diagnostic products. Biogen's research and development activities are focused
on novel products for multiple sclerosis, inflammatory, respiratory, kidney
and cardiovascular diseases and in developmental biology and gene therapy.
For copies of press releases and additional information about the Company,
please consult Biogen's Homepage on the World Wide Web at
http://www.biogen.com.
SOURCE Biogen, Inc.
CO: Biogen, Inc.
ST: Massachusetts
IN: MTC
SU:
10/19/98 13:24 EDT http://www.prnewswire.com