'Life-changing' drug to help MS patients walk available to thousands on NHS

A drug to help people with multiple sclerosis (MS) to walk is being rolled out on the NHS in England, in a move that could be "life-changing" for thousands of people.

Patients in England will be eligible for fampridine, which is the first drug designed to improve walking ability in people with MS, an incurable autoimmune disease which affects the brain and spinal cord.

Fampridine, also known as Fampyra, works by acting as a signal booster, helping to restore electrical signals running along damaged nerves and improve muscle function.

Until now, MS patients with walking difficulties could only be offered physiotherapy, walking aids or devices to support their feet as treatment.

About 5,000 people with MS will be eligible for the drug in the first year, health officials said.

Professor Frankie Swords, NHS national medical director, said: "Walking difficulties can have a huge impact on the freedom and independence of people with MS, so this signal-boosting pill could be life-changing for thousands of patients.

"Fampridine helps electrical messages travel along nerves damaged by MS, giving people the chance to walk more easily and helping them be more mobile to do more of the everyday things that matter to them.

"For some, even a modest improvement could mean getting around the house more easily, going out with greater confidence and living more independently."

The drug is recommended for MS patients with certain Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) scores, a scale used by medics to monitor disability caused by MS.

Those with a score of between four - meaning they can walk without an aid or rest for around 500m - and seven, which include patients who use wheelchairs or are unable to walk further than 5m, will be offered the drug.

Patients will try the drug, which is taken as a pill twice a day, for two to four weeks, with walking ability assessed before and after treatment.

Those who show progress will continue to take the medicine and will be reviewed regularly, the NHS said.

Trials found fampridine improved walking speed in 43% of patients and helped people walk for longer.

'Huge difference to my life'

Aysen Slack, 65, from Eastbourne, East Sussex, previously paid for fampridine privately, but was forced to stop due to the cost.

"Fampridine seemed to be working well for me, but paying for the medication was a significant expense and I could not keep doing that forever," she said.

"So I had to make the difficult decision to stop taking it.

"I would definitely like to try fampridine again on the NHS. My mobility has decreased a lot and even in my flat I have to use sticks now. It would make a huge difference to my life if I were able to improve my walking."

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Ceri Smith, head of policy and evidence at the MS Society, said: "We're delighted that fampridine has now been approved for use on the NHS.

"It's vital that MS services now have the support they need to make fampridine available to all people with MS who could benefit from it, regardless of where in England they live."

She added: "Over 120,000 people live with MS in England and Fampridine is the only licensed treatment that helps improve walking ability and speed for some of these people.

"For many of them, it's life-changing, allowing them to live more independently or stay in employment.

Aside from difficulty walking, other symptoms of MS include tiredness, dizziness, tingling in different parts of the body, muscle cramps, vision problems and memory problems.

(c) Sky News 2026: 'Life-changing' drug to help MS patients walk available to thousands on NHS