2026 is upon us!  As fireworks ring out around the world to usher in the new year, we like to look ahead and think about what new developments we might see in multiple sclerosis research over the coming 12 months.

With that in mind, here are five areas that we will be following closely this year:

  1. Approval of New Therapies 

    There have recently been three successful Phase 3 clinical trials that have involved the use of a BTKi:  tolebrutinib for non-relapsing secondary progressive MS and fenebrutinib for both relapsing-remitting MS and primary progressive MS.  As there is a great unmet need for effective therapies in people living with progressive MS in particular, we wait the regulatory reviews of these therapies with great anticipation.

  2. Remyelination trialsLast year brought mixed results for clinical trials looking to develop myelin repair therapies. The CCMR 2 trial (from the Cambridge Centre for Myelin Repair and the Cambridge Clinical MS Research Group) showed that a combination of metformin and clemastine could promote remyelination, although the effect seen was small.  However, PIPE-307 – another promising myelin repair therapy – failed in a clinical trial and will no longer be pursued.

    With better understanding of how to conduct these trials and what might be needed, it will be interesting to see what trials are announced over the coming year.  Will we see longer trials conducted of therapies that have already been tested or are new and exciting compounds going to be investigated?  Time will tell, but we will be following this area very closely!

  3. New (and old) treatment approachesCAR T-cell therapy has been a hot topic in MS research recently. The first clinical trials have started and initial results may be released this year.  It will be important to see how effective the approach is in stopping disease activity, as well as whether there are any safety concerns.

    Similarly, it will be an interesting year for HSCT.  While this treatment is not new, it is now becoming more widely available outside of clinical trials.  As more data gets published on the effectiveness in real-world populations, it will be interesting to see how this starts to be implemented in the overall treatment of people living with MS.  Will this start to be offered as a more routine option or will it be used as a last resort for those that have failed other treatments?

  4. Digital health and wearable technologiesTechnology is a major part of our lives, but how can it be harnessed to improve the lives of people living with MS? It is a topic of frequent conversation, but questions around what technology to use and how it should be implemented are still largely unanswered.  As devices and applications continue to advance rapidly, we are hopeful that progress will be made in this area in 2026.
  5. Biomarkers and personalised medicineThis is another area that has been heavily discussed and is slowly starting to be used in clinical practice. As you will see in our Facebook post tomorrow (6th January), research is starting to understand the best biomarkers to measure and how they can be used to better predict outcomes for people living with MS and have them guide treatment decisions.

What research topics are you most interested in seeing progress in 2026?  Why not share them with us under this article or on any of our social media channels.

You can find us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram and LinkedIn.

4 Responses

  1. Mohammad

    Dear Clinical Trial Team,

    My name is Mohammad Awwad, I am 35 years old, and I have been diagnosed with Secondary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis (SPMS).

    I am very interested in participating in clinical trials focused on SPMS, particularly those aiming to slow disease progression, provide neuroprotection, or promote remyelination.

    I have a recent MRI and full medical reports available in English, and I am ready to share them for eligibility assessment.

    I am also willing and able to travel internationally, including to Turkey or Europe, to participate in a clinical trial if required.

    Please let me know if I qualify for any of your ongoing or upcoming studies, and what the next steps would be.

    Thank you for your time and consideration.

    Best regards,
    Mohammad Awwad

    Reply
    • MStranslate

      Dear Mohammad,

      Firstly, thank you for your question and please accept our sincere apologies for the slow response to your enquiry. Unfortunately, MStranslate is purely a science communication initiative and, while we report on developments in multiple sclerosis research, we do not conduct clinical trials ourselves. To explore which studies you may be eligible to participate in, we would encourage you to connect with your local multiple sclerosis society. They will be best placed to guide you on the studies that best align with your location and situation.



      Wishing you all the best in your search.



      Kind regards,



      The MStranslate team

      Reply
  2. K

    Is it possible to be on a mailing list that would alert of a new publication on MS research?

    Reply
    • MStranslate

      Dear K,

      Thank you for your question. To stay across all meaningful updates in multiple sclerosis research, we would encourage you to connect with MStranslate across social media, particularly on Facebook if you are an active user of that platform. As you will see, we pride ourselves on making that page a daily resource for the most value-adding and patient-centric developments, while also ensuring it’s a safe and engaging space to ask questions, offer opinions, share experiences and connect with other members of the MS community.



      Hope this helps.



      Kind regards,



      The MStranslate team

      Reply

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