Hi. After optic neuritis in April I have now been diagnosed with MS. I am in need of some advice regarding medication. I have been offered Kesimpta- monthly injection or Mavenclad - a course of tablets. Has anyone got any advice/experiences with these medications?
This comparison might help.
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Hi,
For more general information, you can also look at the âMS Info cardsâ , which are designed to make comparisons easier. Authors at the end, of the document, in case you want to check their credentials.
Have you asked your neurology team what the differences are between the two? What is most important to you in terms of medication?
I was initially offered a really old, low efficacy drug and pushed to get myself onto something higher efficacy. This is because I get the impression high efficacy drugs at the outset have the best chance of preventing disability in the longer term. On that basis, I am now on Kesimpta. For me, itâs been great. The injections are really easy, they look like a big whiteboard pen that you just push against your thigh for a few seconds: then you get on with your life, no need to go near a hospital. After the loading doses you only have to deal with it once a month. Iâve not had side effects apart from flu-like stuff after first couple of doses. And also no proper relapses since starting, though I still get things like fleeting numbness. They will monitor your blood, I think to check itâs not making you too immune suppressed.
Whatever you choose, one thing you can be doing now is getting any vaccinations you can - flu, covid - before you start the medication.
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Hi there
From what I understand, there are three levels of effectiveness of MS drugs.
Kesimpta is in the most effective class called âhighly effectiveâ.
Mavenclad is the next one down eg medium effective (sorry, I donât know the technical term!).
I was given the choice of Kesimpta, Ocrevus (both highly effective) and Mavenclad (medium effective). I chose Kesimpta.
Your MS nurse will be able to help you choose, and as others have said, there is a lot of info on the MS Trust website.
I was also advised to get shingles and pneumonia vaccine before I started Kesimpta.
But the GP wouldnât give them to me until the consultant wrote to him.
Just in case it helps the OP