“What to watch next”: key phases III after ECTRIMS

The Clinical Trials Arena review highlights the late stages of the most promising molecules (including BTK inhibitors) and explains why these programs could change the standard of care. Useful for strategic planning for patients and physicians in 2026+.

September and October 2025 proved to be busy months for multiple sclerosis (MS) specialists, as many of them gathered at three major conferences to discuss clinical trials that could change the current treatment paradigm.

At the conferences of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS), the International Symposium on MS and NMOSD, and the World Congress of Neurology, which opened their doors to attendees over a two-month period, experts from around the world gathered to discuss the most promising treatments for MS, a disease that is estimated to affect 2.9 million people worldwide.

At the center of these discussions were disease-modifying therapies (DMTs), which are used to reduce the frequency and severity of relapses, as well as to slow the formation of new lesions in the brain and spinal cord.

Although a number of DMTs have already been approved for the treatment of MS, three drugs are currently undergoing Phase III clinical trials, including a Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor, a CD20 cell killer, and a dihydroorotate dehydrogenase (DHODH) inhibitor.

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