A total of 21 MS sufferers on the waiting list are set to benefit

The group staged a sit-in protest at the headquarters of the Stoke-on-Trent Primary Care Trust (PCT) when they were told they could not get the treatment.

The PCT has agreed to provide Beta Interferon but only for people on the waiting list who have been assessed.

A total of 21 patients on the waiting list are to benefit.

Studies show the drug can slow the progress of the disease and improve the quality of life for sufferers.

'Time issue'

Chief executive of the PCT, Mike Ridley, said the decision was not a U-turn but the result of an ongoing review.

"We haven't had a change of heart - what we have done is assess all the patients on the waiting list to ensure they are eligible for the drug and to make sure they will receive it.

"We have accelerated our discussions with the University Hospital of North Staffordshire and I am pleased to say we have been able to write to a number of patients confirming the drug will be available assuming they have gone through the appropriate assessment."

MS sufferer Mark Shepherd, one of those who will get the drug, said: "It's a big thank you for releasing the funds for the drug.

"But for all of us with MS it's a time issue and the longer they've left it, the worse it could get."