AAN 2020: Real-World Data on Cladribine Tablets for MS

Jiwon Oh, MD, PhD: Unfortunately, the in-person portion of the American Academy of Neurology meeting was canceled, but we do have access to many of the abstracts that would have been presented at the meeting.

An example of an interesting real-world data abstract is the CLARINET-MS study, which was based on the Italian MS registry. This looked at the longer-term efficacy in the real world of 1 of the medications we commonly use in MS [multiple sclerosis], cladribine tablets.

Overall, the results of the study were quite reassuring. Results showed that even at 3 years, the vast majority of people living with MS who were treated with cladribine tablets, the likelihood of disability significantly progressing was very low. These real-world studies are quite valuable. Obviously, when we start using a medication in a disease like MS, this medication is approved based on phase 3 clinical trials that are done in very controlled settings and are often done on a restricted patient population. But the value of real-world studies such as the CLARINET-MS study is that it gives us real-world evidence that a medication works the way we hope it will, at least based on the earlier clinical trial data.