Pharmaceutical labels could be in demand at pharmacies after it was announced that the first oral drug has been developed for relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (MS).

Fingolimod 0.5 m from Novartis is a new choice for patients who have not been responding to injections but are not yet ready for an infusion treatment, as it is significantly effective at preventing relapses.

To be eligible to receive the new oral drug, MS sufferers need to have had at least one relapse in their condition during the past year.

Dr Eli Silber from King's College Hospital said: "This has the potential to be one of the most significant advances since the first line therapies arrived over a decade ago."

MS is an autoimmune condition that is the result of the body damaging its own myelin, the protective sheath surrounding nerve fibres.

There are some 100,000 sufferers in the UK, according to the MS Society.

Denny Bros Ltd, 19 April 2011