A self-management guide for people with MS

Volume 1 of our self-management guide is now available! For information about key questions relating to your treatment strategy and details about individual disease-modifying therapies, please download the PDF:
Deciding on your treatment strategy

• What are the attributes of the specific DMTs?
  Multiple sclerosis (MS) treatment has evolved rapidly, with 11 classes of disease-modifying therapy (DMT) now available in the UK. I will summarise them briefly and explain how they fit within a treatment paradigm for effective and safe use.
• Do I understand the concepts of treat-2-target and NEDA?
  Has anyone discussed a treatment target with you, including the need to rebaseline your disease activity? Have the concepts of preventing end-organ damage to the central nervous system (the ‘end-organ’ in MS) and brain volume loss or atrophy been broached?
• How immunosuppressed am I?
  Do you understand the difference between short-term intermittent and long-term continuous immunosuppression? Here we address another of the key questions to consider before deciding on a specific disease-modifying therapy (DMT).
• How do I want my MS to be treated?
  What is the difference between a maintenance ̶ escalation DMT and an immune reconstitution therapy (IRT)? Why is it important to understand the distinction?
• Am I eligible for an MS disease-modifying therapy?
  Do you know the eligibility criteria for MS disease-modifying therapies? And who decides what drugs can be prescribed for your MS?
• What are the consequences of not treating MS?
  Are there valid reasons not to treat MS with a disease-modifying therapy? What are the consequences of not treating MS? Is watchful waiting justified?

The links below take you out of the MS-Selfie website to Prof G’s MS-Selfie newsletter and research archive. Edited posts, consistent with the other site content, will replace them as the website develops.