Disseminated on behalf of Quantum BioPharma Ltd. (NASDAQ: QNTM) (CSE: QNTM) and may include paid advertising.
- Multiple sclerosis is one of the most common neurological diseases affecting young adults worldwide.
- Study is evaluating technique that allows researchers to tell the difference between nerve damage that may still be reversible and damage that is permanent.
- Quantum BioPharma reports two key developments: patient enrollment in the pilot study has reached its halfway mark and preliminary imaging data is encouraging.
A key imaging study examining a novel approach to tracking multiple sclerosis (“MS”) has reached its halfway point in patient enrollment, with early results showing a meaningful signal in MS lesions. Quantum BioPharma (NASDAQ: QNTM) (CSE: QNTM), a biopharmaceutical company focused on neurodegenerative and metabolic disorders, announced the milestone as part of its ongoing imaging collaboration with Massachusetts General Hospital, where researchers are evaluating a novel positron emission tomography (“PET”) imaging tracer that could support the development of Lucid-MS, the company’s MS drug candidate.
Multiple sclerosis is one of the most common neurological diseases affecting young adults worldwide. Approximately 2.9 million people are living with the disease globally, and nearly one million of those individuals are in the United States. Most people are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 40, meaning MS strikes during some of the most productive years of a person’s life.
The disease attacks the central nervous system by damaging myelin, the protective coating around nerve fibers. This damage disrupts communication between the brain and the rest of the body. Symptoms can range from fatigue, numbness and vision problems to severe mobility impairment, cognitive difficulty and paralysis. The course of MS is unpredictable, and for many patients, the disease progresses in ways that are difficult to foresee or control.
Treatments exist that can slow the disease’s progression and reduce the frequency of relapses. But no therapy has yet demonstrated the ability to reliably halt or reverse the underlying nerve damage that drives long-term disability. That gap represents one of the central unmet needs in modern neurology. Better ways of measuring that damage, and of knowing whether a drug is actually protecting or repairing the nervous system, are urgently needed.
This is where Quantum BioPharma’s work with Massachusetts General Hospital becomes particularly significant. The study centers on a novel PET imaging technique using the tracer [¹⁸F]3F4AP, developed by Dr. Pedro Brugarolas, an investigator in radiology at MGH and assistant professor at Harvard Medical School. The technique is designed to detect demyelinated neurons that still have intact axons. That distinction matters enormously. It allows researchers to tell the difference between nerve damage that may still be reversible and damage that is permanent.
The announcement highlights two key developments. First, patient enrollment in the pilot study has reached its halfway mark. Reaching that midpoint is a meaningful operational signal. It indicates the study is progressing on schedule and moving toward the dataset size needed to draw reliable conclusions.
Second, the preliminary imaging data is encouraging. The first cohort of participants has been imaged using both advanced PET/MR and total-body PET platforms. Preliminary analyses show a robust signal in acute MS lesions, along with potential sensitivity to gray matter lesions. If those early findings hold as enrollment continues, the imaging approach could provide a more direct and quantitative way to track myelin loss and repair over time.
“We are excited to reach this important midpoint in our study with MGH and encouraged by the strength of the preliminary imaging data,” said Quantum BioPharma VP over scientific and clinical affairs Dr. Andrzej Chruscinski. “PET imaging with [¹⁸F]3F4AP has the potential to fundamentally change how we assess demyelination, providing a direct window into axonal health and enabling us to more clearly demonstrate the impact of therapies like Lucid-MS that aim to protect and restore the myelin sheath in MS.”
Brugarolas added that the ability to directly quantify demyelinated lesions with intact axons in living patients fills an important gap in MS research. “If further validated, this imaging approach could provide a more direct and quantitative measure of myelin loss and repair, which may help improve the evaluation of disease mechanisms and therapeutic response in MS,” he said.
These findings are directly relevant to Lucid-MS, the company’s investigational compound designed to inhibit demyelination by targeting the enzyme PAD2, which is implicated in myelin degradation. Lucid-MS previously completed phase 1 clinical trials with a favorable safety profile and was well tolerated in healthy participants, providing a strong foundation for the next stage of development. In March 2026, the company submitted an Investigational New Drug application to the FDA for a phase 2 trial.
A more precise imaging tool and a drug candidate designed to address the underlying cause of MS make for a compelling combination. Reaching the enrollment midpoint with promising early data suggests the science is holding up under real clinical conditions.
For more information, visit www.QuantumBioPharma.com.
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