Most patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) present with the relapsing-remitting form of the disease. Pharmacologic treatment usually includes a disease-modifying drug, corticosteroids for acute exacerbations, and other drugs for managing symptoms such as fatigue, depression, and pain. Early use of disease-modifying therapy has improved clinical outcomes.

Anticoagulants are the drugs of choice for treatment and prevention of deep venous thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE), collectively referred to as venous thromboembolism (VTE). US guidelines for treatment of VTE were updated in 2020 and 2021.

Cholesterol management guidelines from the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force were last published in 2019.

Remdesivir (Veklury – Gilead), an investigational antiviral drug administered by IV infusion, is now available through an FDA Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for treatment of COVID-19 in all hospitalized patients. An earlier EUA limited use of the drug to patients hospitalized with severe disease.

The sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor empagliflozin (Jardiance – Boehringer Ingelheim) was approved by the FDA in 2021 to reduce the risk of hospitalization for heart failure (HF) and cardiovascular death in patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF; LVEF ≤40%), regardless of whether or not they have type 2 diabetes. The indication has now been expanded to include patients with HF with any ejection fraction. Empagliflozin is the first SGLT2 inhibitor to be approved in the US for this indication.

The FDA has approved Furoscix (scPharmaceuticals), a subcutaneous formulation of the loop diuretic furosemide administered via a single-use, on-body infusor, for treatment of congestion due to fluid overload in adults with New York Heart Association (NYHA) Class II-III chronic heart failure (HF). Furosemide (Lasix, and generics) has been available for years in oral and IV formulations.

The interleukin-6 (IL-6) receptor antagonist tocilizumab (Actemra – Genentech) has been approved by the FDA for IV treatment of COVID-19 in hospitalized adults who are receiving a systemic corticosteroid and require supplemental oxygen, mechanical ventilation, or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). Tocilizumab was previously available for this indication under an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA); it remains available under an EUA for treatment of children 2-17 years old who are hospitalized with COVID-19 and require oxygen support.

Nadofaragene firadenovec-vncg (Adstiladrin – Ferring), an adenoviral vector-based gene therapy, has been approved by the FDA for treatment of adults with high-risk Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG)-unresponsive non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) with carcinoma in situ with or without papillary tumors. It is the first adenoviral vector-based gene therapy to be approved in the US for this indication. The immune checkpoint inhibitor pembrolizumab (Keytruda) was approved for the same indication in 2021.

The oral cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) 4/6 inhibitor abemaciclib (Verzenio – Lilly), which was approved by the FDA in 2017 for treatment of hormone receptor (HR)-positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative advanced or metastatic breast cancer, has now been approved for use in combination with endocrine therapy (tamoxifen or an aromatase inhibitor) for adjuvant treatment of patients with HR-positive, HER2-negative, node-positive, early breast cancer at high risk of recurrence and a Ki-67 score ≥20%.

Efgartigimod alfa-fcab (Vyvgart – Argenx), a first-in-class neonatal Fc receptor (FcRn) antagonist, has been approved by the FDA for IV treatment of generalized myasthenia gravis in adults who are anti-acetylcholine receptor (AChR) antibody positive. The IV complement inhibitor eculizumab (Soliris) was approved for the same indication in 2017.