The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NAS) is undertaking a study into accelerating the development of treatments and improving quality of life for people with ALS. This is a huge win for the community. The ALS Association led an effort to get Congress to direct NAS to undertake a study on ALS and also fought for $1 million to fund the study.
The ALS Association spent over $2 million helping fund the development and clinical trial of AMX0035. When the results of that trial showed it was safe and effective in treating ALS, the ALS Association led an advocacy campaign to push the FDA to approve the drug. After two years of advocacy, the FDA finally approved AMX0035.
The ALS Association, the country’s largest nonprofit committed to making ALS livable and finding a cure, today celebrated the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) approval of AMX0035, a new treatment for people living with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a fatal neurodegenerative disease. The Association invested $2.2 million of funds raised through the 2014 ALS Ice Bucket Challenge into the development and trial of AMX0035, and led the years-long advocacy campaign that pushed the FDA to approve the treatment prior to completion of an ongoing phase 3 trial.
We talked with Dr. John Kalambogias, postdoctoral fellow from Columbia University, to learn more about his research focused on dysfunction and degeneration of corticospinal tract neurons in ALS mouse models.
“We are grateful to Cytokinetics for their partnership and transparency, enabling the global research community to leverage these data in their ongoing analyses and research activities,” said Neil Thakur, Ph.D., Chief Mission Officer at The ALS Association.
The researchers focus on an earlier phase of ALS development, which is commonly understood to be a “silent” phase – before symptoms of the disease begin to manifest. Those minor motor impairments in the earlier phase are currently insufficient for a confirmed diagnosis.
People with ALS, caregivers and people at risk of an ALS diagnosis have the opportunity to help the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) review applications for funding to support research into expanded access.
New long-term analysis published in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry showed AMX0035 was effective at reducing a variety of harms associated with ALS during the previously published Phase 2 Centaur trial.
The ALS Association, in collaboration with ALS Finding a Cure, recently awarded $400,000 to support research into the role SARM1 gene mutations play in the development and progression of ALS, with the ultimate goal of using an improved understanding of SARM1 to develop new treatments.
The ALS Association has launched a new funding opportunity to support exploratory research that has the potential for a significant impact on the fight against ALS.