MS Awareness Month: Four Things to Know about Living with MS
Learning how to manage multiple sclerosis (MS) might feel like a challenge, especially at first. There is no cure for MS. But with multiple treatment options, and routine monitoring to achieve successful clinical outcomes and maintain quality of life, patients can strive to live a full and active life! Patients can work directly with their doctor and healthcare team – including their specialty pharmacist – to create a treatment plan that works best for them. Here are four things to know about living with MS.
1. Understanding multiple sclerosis is the first step in taking charge of your health.
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an unpredictable, chronic, inflammatory disease that involves an immune-mediated attack on the central nervous system (CNS) impacting the individual’s brain, optic nerves, and spinal cord. The cause of MS is still unknown. Scientists believe that a combination of environmental and genetic factors contribute to the risk of developing MS
MS can impact an individual’s ability to work, participate in recreational and social events, as well as general activities of daily living. As time goes by during phases of exacerbation and remission, life-altering events and aging place additional adaptation demands on a person’s MS self-care management.”2
Nearly 1 million people are living with MS in the U.S. and 2.3 million worldwide. Most people are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, with at least two to three times more women than men being diagnosed with the disease.1 The diagnosis of MS requires evidence of at least two areas of damage in the CNS, which have occurred at different times, and other diagnoses must be ruled out.
2. Nearly two dozen disease modifying therapies are available to treat MS.
The goal of treatment is to reduce disease activity, manage symptoms and maintain the patient’s quality of life. Treatment typically consists of an array of multi-disciplinary options based on each patient’s unique clinical presentations. These may include MS symptom management medications; physical, occupational, and rehabilitative therapies; and over time, neuropsychiatric treatments with behavioral counseling. If the outcomes do not meet this goal, the patient’s healthcare team may modify the treatment plan.
Upon diagnosis, most patients begin a MS disease-modifying therapy (DMT). Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved 23 DMTs for the treatment of MS. Prescribers will discuss options with each patient based on which DMT is anticipated to provide optimal benefit and treatment efficacy. The patient’s administration preference (oral versus injectable or infusion) as well as his or her tolerance for risking common and serious side effects of its use are also taken into consideration.3
3. AllianceRx Walgreens Pharmacy supports patients along their MS journey.
Through AllianceRx Walgreens Pharmacy’s clinical program, Connected Care Multiple Sclerosis, our specialty pharmacists, nurses, and coordinators understand the complexities of this condition. Our team offers one-on-one support when processing the medication order, and as needed, we help eligible patients secure approval and financial assistance.
We also provide clinical interventions based on what issues each patient reports, and address questions or concerns they may have. Our interventions include:
• MS disease state counseling
• Management of MS symptoms
• Medication counseling on administration and storage
• Injection counseling and training coordination, as indicated
• Medication adherence monitoring and, as needed, counseling on barriers to adherence success
• Medication side effect management
• Screening for depression and fatigue
• Smoking cessation information
• Provider notification by fax or phone as indicated
4. Specialty pharmacists play an important role in supporting patients with MS.
The specialty pharmacist role is key to keeping the individual living with MS informed, supported and on track to meet their specific treatment goals along the MS continuum. Specialty pharmacists provide first dose and ongoing counseling regarding the patient’s MS DMT – as well as new counseling and support in the event the patient may be switched to a new DMT and other new medications to manage symptoms. They also provide counseling, support, and notification to the prescriber when the patient reports issues that are variances to treatment success such as: non-adherence, side effects and MS symptoms.
At any time, patients may call the pharmacist with questions or concerns they may have about their MS management. This empowering connection with a specialty pharmacist builds trust, confidence and hope for individuals living with such an unpredictable and challenging condition as MS.
Resources:
AllianceRx Walgreens Pharmacy Specialty Pharmacy Patient Care Guide
AllianceRx Walgreens Pharmacy Patient Care Guide: Understanding Multiple Sclerosis
Sources:
1 What is MS? National Multiple Sclerosis Society (NMSS) website https://www.nationalmssociety.org/What-is-MS
2 Vijayasingham and F. Mairami. Employment of patients with multiple sclerosis: the influence of psychosocial-structural coping and context https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6053901/
3 Multiple Sclerosis Coalition. The use of disease-modifying therapies in multiple sclerosis. June 2019. https://www.nationalmssociety.org/NationalMSSociety/media/MSNationalFiles/Brochures/DMT_Consensus_MS_Coalition.pdf
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