CNMSC & Novartis Biomarkers Collaboration
The CNMSC has entered into a collaborative project with Novartis that spans 3 years. This exciting collaborative project was formed to advance MS clinician and clinic understanding and use of additional biomarkers beyond MRI to monitor MS patients in Canada.
Summary of activities 2025-2026:
- Negotiation of a collaborative project agreement between Novartis and CNMSC
- Formation of biomarker working group CNMSC
- CNMSC Working Group Members
- Dr. Penny Smyth
- Dr. Mark Freedman
- Dr. Philip Beuachemin
- Dr. Jiwon Oh
- Dr. Alexandra Muccilli
- Dr. Fraser Clift
- Dr. Jodie Roberts
- CNMSC Working Group Members
- Co-creation of biomarker survey - sent out to CNMSC Dec 2024/Jan 2025
- Review and summary of biomarker survey results by Biomarker working group Feb 2025
- Review of biomarker survey with Novartis Final sNfL survey Feb 2025 Slide Deck.pdf
- Incorporation of the use of biomarkers into CNMSC fellow presentation June 2025
- Initiation of updated Canadian Treatment Optimization Guidelines April 2025 and assignment of working groups, including guidelines on the use of biomarkers
Dr. Simon Thebault explains and uses real life cases to answer the following 6 questions regarding MS biomarkers
- What practical steps should Canadian neurologists follow to integrate sNfL measurements into routine clinical practice?
- How can sNfL levels help in assessing the stability of patients on low efficacy treatments?
- What are the benefits of using sNfL in patients who appear stable but have complaints not substantiated by usual diagnostic tools?
- Can you provide other examples of clinical scenarios where sNfL has been particularly useful in managing MS?
- How should clinicians interpret sNfL results obtained from the Roche Elecsys assay in comparison to those from the SIMOA assay?
- What considerations should be made when using these assays for clinical decision-making in MS?
