How Ocrevus works in Multiple Sclerosis

How Ocrevus works in Multiple Sclerosis

In this video I explain how Ocrevus (Ocrelizumab) works to treat relapsing and progressive forms of Multiple Sclerosis. It's different than every other MS medicine. It is also the ONLY MS disease modifying therapy FDA approved to treat both forms of MS!

Ocrevus is not a pill nor a shot, it's infused via an IV. It's a monoclonal antibody. Think of these monoclonal antibodies as a "smart bomb" that can find one specific type of cell in the body and kill it, while leaving the rest of the cells of the body completely alone.

Ocrevus is a "smart bomb" that only targets and kills cells that express the "hang tag" or "sign" called CD-20. Only adult B cells express CD-20, so all other cell lines, such as T cells, are left untouched by Ocervus. Also, the baby B cells lack CD-20, so Ocrevus doesn't touch them (more on this below).

We believe that T cells are the ones mostly responsible for inappropriately attacking your brain and spinal cord in the setting of MS. However, the T cells can't get fired up and attack very well UNLESS they have their friends the adult B cells there to stimulate them. Well, when we give a PwMS the drug Ocrevus, we effectively kill all of that T cells friends! We kill the adult B cells so they can't stimulate the T cell, and therefore the T cell can't attack the brain and spinal cord.

Why is Ocrevus given every 6 months? Because it takes ~6 months for the baby B cells to grow up! Just in time to kill them too.

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Learn about MS with me, Aaron Boster MD! I started this channel to help my own MS patients learn between clinic visits. I use easy-to-understand language to provide accurate and approachable Multiple Sclerosis education. So, if you’re impacted by MS and want to up your game, make sure to subscribe to my channel right now!

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NOTE: These videos do not provide medical advice and are for informational/educational purposes only. The videos are not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of a qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read or seen in any of our videos.