Overview
- A study published on Wednesday, July 15, 2026, found people with untreated MS had about twice the CD4 T‑cell response to EBV and roughly 2.5 times higher EBV in saliva than people without MS.
- The researchers showed that B‑cell–depleting therapies, including anti‑CD20 drugs, drove those EBV signals down to near normal, suggesting the drugs work in part by removing EBV‑infected B cells.
- Authors and clinicians argue the findings make antivirals and vaccines promising alternatives to broad immunosuppression, but no approved EBV antiviral exists and vaccine candidates remain in trials.
- More aggressive approaches such as CAR‑T cell therapy have produced remissions in some patients, but doctors warn they carry serious side effects and can leave patients immunosuppressed.
- EBV infects more than 95 percent of adults while under 1 percent develop MS, so experts note population trade‑offs for prevention strategies because roughly 1,000 vaccinations would be needed to prevent one MS case.