Treatment with the IL-6 receptor-blocking monoclonal antibody satralizumab is associated with a reduced risk of relapse in people with myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG) antibody-associated disease (MOGAD), according to new phase III trial data presented by Michael Levy at the 2026 American Academy of Neurology Annual Meeting (18–22 April 2026, Chicago, Illinois, USA). MOGAD is an autoimmune demyelinating disorder caused by autoantibodies that target MOG on the myelin sheath, and the pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-6 has an important role in its pathogenesis.

The METEROID trial recruited 132 individuals with relapsing MOGAD, which was defined as 1 or more relapses in the past 12 months or 2 or more relapses in the past 24 months. The participants were randomly assigned to subcutaneously administered satralizumab (n = 68) or placebo (n = 64). The satralizumab-treated group showed a 68% reduction in the risk of a new MOGAD relapse compared with the placebo group, and 87.3% of the satralizumab group and 66.5% of the placebo group were relapse-free at 48 weeks. Satralizumab was found to be safe and well tolerated, with comparable rates of adverse events between the treatment and placebo groups.