HD research news - medical research into treatment & prevention

Amarin Ethyl-EPA (Miraxion) study results

April 2007

Huntington Study Group and the European HD Network (EHDN) announce the preliminary results of Ethyl-EPA (Miraxion) for the treatment of HD.

Unfortunately, after six months of treatment, patients on Ethyl-EPA did not display less motor impairment than patients on placebo. In addition, other aspects of HD (e.g. overall function and cognition) did not appear to benefit from Ethyl-EPA treatment over the six months. However, treatment with Ethyl-EPA did not result in serious unwanted effects and can be considered safe and well tolerated by people affected by HD. Further analysis of the data will be carried out, and this will hopefully reveal more about why these results differ from previous smaller trials.

The Ethyl-EPA trial in Europe and the TREND HD Study combined represent one of the largest trials in HD patients, with 290 participants being recruited through 27 sites across Europe. This study helped to clarify the potential benefits of a novel treatment for HD in a clear and unequivocal way. This gives reason to expect that future trials in HD using different compounds can be conducted successfully and with conclusive results - hopefully though with a better outcome.

If you have been taking part in this study, you will receive a letter from the doctor who enrolled you in the study. There is also information on the EHDN website (www.euro-hd.net/html/projects/amarin). The advice is to continue taking Ethyl-EPA while further analysis of the data is being carried out, as it appears to be safe and we are still not sure what the benefit may be over the longer term. However, this is your decision. If you have any queries, please contact the doctor who enrolled you in the study.

Further information can be found on the EHDN website (www.euro-hd.net/html/projects/amarin).