Myasthenia Gravis Faces Significant Unmet Needs in Disease Treatment


Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an autoimmune neuromuscular disorder characterized by muscle weakness and fatigue. Currently, first-line treatments are mainly off-label symptomatic therapies due to affordability and accessibility. (1 Trusted Source
Major unmet needs plague classification and treatment of myasthenia gravis

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Disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) are reserved for refractory class II-V MG patients, which lead to significant unmet needs in MG classification and treatment, according to GlobalData, a data and analytics company.

In July 2023, GlobalData surveyed 82 high-prescribing neurologists in the 7MM (US, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, UK, and Japan) to assess MG trends and unmet needs. They emphasized the need for better physician and public awareness of MG, especially in early-stage ocular MG, which can be challenging to diagnose. They also expressed the necessity for prognostic biomarkers to aid treatment selection for different MG types.

Symptoms and Signs of Myasthenia Gravis

Muscle weakness and fatigue are the primary symptoms, characterized by painless weakness that worsens with muscle use and improves with rest. Typically, weakness initiates in the eye muscles, resulting in drooping eyelids and blurred or double vision. As the disease progresses, weakness can affect almost any skeletal muscle, leading to symptoms such as slurred speech, difficulty chewing and swallowing, nasal regurgitation, weakness in the limbs, and, in severe cases, breathing difficulties referred to as myasthenia crisis. The distribution and severity of weakness can vary and may increase with factors like anxiety, infection, or menstrual periods, while rest can provide relief.

One common unmet need identified by neurologists and key opinion leaders (KOLs) was the lack of a “class 0” classification for symptom-free patients in remission. Access issues with high-cost DMTs were also highlighted, particularly the delay in access for patients requiring multiple ineffective off-label treatments.

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Barbora Salcman, Neurology Analyst at GlobalData, stated, “KOLs do not expect any of the upcoming pipeline agents to have a significant influence on changing the treatment paradigm or improving access to DMTs for non-refractory patients. GlobalData therefore expects most of the unmet needs in MG to not be fully addressed over the next decade.”

Reference :

  1. Major unmet needs plague classification and treatment of myasthenia gravis – (https://www.globaldata.com/media/pharma/major-unmet-needs-plague-classification-treatment-myasthenia-gravis-says-globaldata/)

Source: Medindia



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