Even though the therapeutic panel for multiple sclerosis (MS) treatment has improved in the last 20 years, safety data especially for the second-line and innovative treatments are lacking. The association between MS and cancer has long been investigated but has led to conflicting results. No studies have reported an increased risk of cancer after long-term exposure to immuno-modulators. The present study will assess whether drugs for the treatment of MS are associated with an increased risk of cancer by analyzing the disproportionality of reports in the World Health Organization (WHO) pharmacovigilance database.
A case non-case study using Vigibase®, the World Health Organization Global Individual Case Safety Reports (ICSRs) database which includesreports forwarded to the WHO Uppsala Monitoring Center by national pharmacovigilance systems from over 130 countries around the world since 1967. Information on the adverse effects reported include patient demographics and medical relevant history, drugs recorded according to the WHO Drug dictionary and adverse drug reactions coded with Medical Dictionary for Regulatory Activities (MedDRA) terms will be perform.
Study Type
OBSERVATIONAL
Enrollment
200,000
Exposure in ICSRs to MS drugs (dichotomous, exposed/not exposed), for each individual MS drug
Risk of reporting cancer overall specific cancers [ Time Frame: Reported in the World Health Organization (WHO) database of individual safety case reports from 2000 to 12/31/2019 ] performing a disproportionality analysis
o Risk of reporting cancer overall and for specific cancer types (including breast, lung, lymphoma, cervical, melanoma and NMSC) with a specific drug of MS (β-interferon, glatiramer acetate, fumaric acid, teriflunomide, fingolimod, natalizumab, ocrelizumab or alemtuzumab) compared with the others drugs of MS
Time frame: 2000 to 2019
Risk of reporting cancer specific cancers [ Time Frame: Reported in the World Health Organization (WHO) database of individual safety case reports from 2000 to 12/31/2019 ] performing a disproportionality analysis
o Risk of reporting cancer specific cancer types with a specific drug of MS compared with all other non-MS drugs performing a disproportionality analysis
Time frame: 2000 to 2019
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