Genzyme Canada announced today that the Canadian Drug Expert Committee (CDEC), through the Common Drug Review (CDR), recommended to all participating provincial and other public drug plans that Lemtrada (alemtuzumab) be listed for the management of adult patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). Eligible patients with active disease defined by clinical and imaging features, and who have had an inadequate response to interferon beta or other disease-modifying therapies.

This announcement follows similar decisions by the Institut national d'excellence en santé et en services sociaux (INESSS) in Québec, and international health technology assessment agencies, such as the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in the UK, and the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) in Australia.

"We are pleased that Canadians with relapsing-remitting MS, who have had an inadequate response to other therapies, are one step closer to benefiting from an innovative new option to manage their disease," says Sylvia Leonard, National Vice President, Talent, Programs and Services, MS Society of Canada. "Access to new treatments is critical, and so we encourage provincial governments to remain responsive in their coverage based on this recommendation."

For more details, go to: http://www.newswire.ca/en/story/1559939/canadians-with-multiple-sclerosis-one-step-closer-to-accessing-lemtrada