Novartis says study shows Gilenya benefits patients with MS

ZURICH (Reuters) – Novartis said studies show its Gilenya drug helped keep patients with multiple sclerosis free of the disease. The Basel-based pharmaceutical manufacturer is relying on new products like Gilenya to offset patent expiries of key drugs such as Diovan for high blood pressure. Switching to Gilenya from interferon increased the proportion of patients disease free after one year of treatment, Novartis said on Wednesday. (Reporting by Alice Baghdjian)