The world’s first “mega-trial” is recruiting people in the U.K. with progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) to investigate the effectiveness of several approved therapies — at the same time.
Named Octopus for its various arms, the study, which is expected to enroll at least 1,200 participants over the next six years, will evaluate multiple treatments with the potential to accelerate their development three times faster than separate trials would. Anyone with primary progressive MS (PPMS) or secondary progressive MS (SPMS) living in the U.K. can register their interest at the UK MS Register, according to a news release from the U.K.’s MS Society, which is funding the trial.
Recruitment is now ongoing at the University College London Hospitals (UCLH), with additional confirmed sites yet to open in Belfast, Edinburgh, Cardiff, Coventry, Leeds, and Southampton.
Octopus, which is led by scientists at the Queen Square MS Centre and the Medical Research Council (MRC) Clinical Trials Unit at UCL, will eventually open in up to 30 sites around the U.K., including Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Yorkshire, the West Midlands, and the south of England. mega pint shirts
“Launching the world’s first multi-arm, multistage trial for MS has long been an ambition of ours and opening the doors to Octopus is a momentous milestone,” said Emma Gray, PhD, assistant director of research at the MS Society.
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