Episode 53: The Expanding Role of Patient-Reported Outcomes in MS Research

Patient-reported outcomes (PROs) have become a critical tool for capturing the lived experience of multiple sclerosis (MS), offering a perspective that extends beyond traditional clinical and imaging metrics. As research increasingly prioritises real-world relevance and individualised care, PROs provide valuable insights into symptoms such as fatigue, mood changes, and cognitive decline—factors that often evade objective measurement but have a profound impact on quality of life. Professor Jan Hillert of Karolinska Institute in Sweden and chair of the Swedish MS Registry joins host Brett Drummond of MStranslate to discuss how patient-reported data are being integrated into clinical trial design and observational studies. They also explore current limitations to their use and highlight best practices for validation and interpretation.