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Scientific Program - Multiple Sclerosis

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Section Heads: Xavier Montalban, Spain & Olaf Stüve, USA
Please see below the CONy Scientific Program. Please click on the appropriate section to view the relevant program. Please note that the program and timing is subject to change. To view the program timetable / overview, please click here
 
For the full Scientific Program, please click here >
FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2016
 
08:30-10:30
MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS (MS) – SHOULD IMAGING HAVE THE LAST WORD?
 
Chairs: Maria Edite Rio, Portugal; Lea Pollak, Israel
08:30-09:30
Debate: Is no evidence of disease activity NEDA a clinically relevant endpoint for therapuetic decisions?
 
Capsule: Currently, numerous clinical and paraclinical biomarkers are utilized to diagnose and monitor MS. There continues to be uncertainty on how specific biomarkers should impact the decision making of neurologists
08:30-08:40
Host: Uroš Rot, Slovenia
08:40-08:55
08:55-09:10
09:10-09:30 Discussion and rebuttals
09:30-10:30
Debate: My MRI worsened but I didn't. Should I change my disease-modifying treatment?
 
Capsule: New diagnostic tools have made the management of MS patients more complex. What should be the main driver of clinical decision making: Clinical findings? Imaging? A combination of the two?
09:30-09:40
Host: Xavier Montalban, Spain
09:40-09:55
09:55-10:10
10:10-10:30 Discussion and rebuttals
 
DISEASE COURSE MODIFICATION
 
Chairs: João Cerqueira, Portugal; Zbigniew Stelmasiak, Poland
10:45-11:45
Debate: Is vitamin D a substantial disease modifier in patients with MS?
 
Capsule: Why do patients with MS show an accumulation of clinical disability? Is there a biochemical biomarker that explains geographical, gender, and age distribution of the disease? Can this biomarker be modified? Is vitamin D such a marker?
10:45-10:55
Host: Jera Kruja, Albania
10:55-11:10
Yes: Friedemann Paul, Germany
11:10-11:25
11:25-11:45 Discussion and rebuttals
11:45-12:45 Debate: Does the risk of PML associated with certain DMT limit their use and offset their potential efficacy?
Capsule: Opportunistic infections of the central nervous system (CNS) have been associated with MS pharmacotherapies. With natalizumab, progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) is a frequent adverse event, which has also been observed less frequently with other DMTs. Does that risk outweight benefits for all of them?
11:45-11:55 Veronica Popescu, Belgium
11:55-12:10 Hans-Peter Hartung, Germany
12:10-12:25 Antonio Uccelli, Italy
12:25-12:45 Discussion and rebuttals
15:00-17:00
THERAPEUTIC CHALLENGES IN MS: WHEN TO START, WHEN TO STOP?
 
Chairs: Joaquim Pinheiro, Portugal; Luis Cunha, Portugal
15:00-16:00
Proposition: Patients with radiologically isolated demyelinating syndrome should be considered for MS disease modifying therapy
 
Capsule: The current treatment dogma in patients with relapsing forms of MS is to treat as early as possible to modify the natural course of the disease. Should we treat even earlier?
15:00-15:10
Host: Xavier Montalban, Spain
15:10-15:25
Yes: David Leppert, Switzerland
15:25-15:40
15:40-16:00 Discussion and rebuttals
16:00-17:00
Debate: Should disease-modifying therapies be stopped in patients who have developed secondary progressive MS?
 
Capsule: All currently approved pharmacotherapies are effective in patients with relapsing forms of MS. Secondary-progressive MS is always a retrospective diagnosis, and it is often challenging to determine the exact time transition. Should patients beyond a certain disease duration and age be exposed to therapies that have potential adverse effects, but may not provide any benefits?
16:00-16:10
Host: Zsolt Illes, Denmark
16:10-16:25
16:25-16:40
16:40-17:00 Discussion and rebuttals
17:15-19:00
MS THERAPY: THE UNKNOWNS
Chairs: Maria Jose Sa, Portugal; Xavier Montalban, Spain
17:15-18:10
Debate: Anti B cell or non specific anti B+T therapy
 
Capsule: Clinical trials with ocrelizumab in patients with relapsing-remitting MS demonstrated that B cell depletion with anti-CD20 therapy is effective. Are therapies that target non-B cells obsolete? Does the targeting of numerous cellular targets provide additional benefits?
17:15-17:25
Host: Mark Freedman, Canada
17:25-17:40
17:40-17:55
Pro Anti B+T: Bruno Gran, UK
17:55-18:10 Discussion and rebuttals
18:10-19:00
Debate: Can we expect long-term clinical improvement through remyelination?
 
Capsule: The histopathological substrate of clinical disability has not been fully elucidated. Is it demyelination? Is it neurodegernation? Is it a combination of the two?
18:10-18:20
Host: David Leppert, Switzerland
18:20-18:35
18:35-18:50
18:50-19:00 Discussion and rebuttals
SATURDAY, MARCH 19, 2016
 
LECTURE SERIES
Chair: TBA
09:40-10:00 Effect of glatiramer acetate on peripheral blood brain-derived neurotrophic factor and phosphorylated TrkB levels in relapsing-remitting MS
Anca Dana Buzoianu, Romania
15:00-17:00
NEUROIMMUNOLGOY
Chair: Eduardo Freitas, Portugal; Hans-Peter Hartung, Germany
15:00-16:00
Debate: Placebo controlled treatment in neuromyelitis optica (NMO) are unethical and not needed
 
Capsule: Most patients with NMO have a relapsing disease course and may accumulate neurological disability with each relapse. There are fewer paraclinical datapoints on MRO than in patients with MS. There are substantially fewer patients. How should pharmacotherapies be testied?
15:00-15:10
Host: Zslot Illes, Denmark
15:10-15:25
15:25-15:40
15:40-16:00 Discussion and rebuttals
16:00-17:00
Debate: NMO-IgG is sufficient to cause the pathology of an NMO lesion without participation of T cells
Capsule: Anti-aquaporin4 IgG is one biomarker for neuromyelitis optica. In animal models, these antibodies have been show to be pathogenic. Can we ignore the role of T cells. Is it sufficient to focus therapeutic efforts on B cells?
16:00-16:10
Host: Antonio Uccelli, Italy
16:10-16:25
Yes: Brian Weinshenker, USA
16:25-16:40
16:40-17:00 Discussion and rebuttals
 
NEUROIMMUNOLOGY: TREATMENT
Chair: Sergiu Blumen, Israel; Anca Dana Buzoianu, Romania 
17:15-18:10
Debate: Which should be the first-line therapy for CIDP? Steroids vs. IVIg
Capsule: Evidence-based first-line therapies for CIDP consist of corticosteroids, IVIg and plasma exchange. The choice of the first-line treatment is based frequently on personal perception of the balance between short-term efficacy, safety and cost of the treatment in the specific patient, but other factors such as later treatment dependence and ability to withdraw treatment are usually not considered sufficiently
17:15-17:25
Host: Vivian Drory, Israel
17:25-17:40
17:40-17:55
17:55-18:10 Discussion and rebuttals
18:10-18:50 Re-evaluation of modern and older treatments in MS
18:10-18:20 Gylenya: Mark Freedman, Canada
18:20-18:30 Laquinimod: Hans-Peter Hartung, Germany
18:30-18:40 Tecfiedera: Ron Milo, Israel
18:40-18:50 Teriflunomide: Ovidiu Bajenaru, Romania