(Claim) New treatment can 'halt' multiple sclerosis, says study

[nitpicker]

http://www.bbc.com/news/health-36490315

New treatment can 'halt' multiple sclerosis, says study
8 hours ago

Aggressive chemotherapy followed by a stem cell transplant can halt the progression of multiple sclerosis (MS), a small study has suggested. The research, published in The Lancet, looked at 24 patients aged between 18 and 50 from three hospitals in Canada. For 23 patients the treatment greatly reduced the onset of the disease, but in one case a person died. An MS Society spokeswoman said this type of treatment does "offer hope" but also comes with "significant risks".
(snip)

One existing treatment is for the immune system to be suppressed with chemotherapy and then stem cells are introduced to the patient's bloodstream - this procedure is known as an autologous haematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT).

But in this study, Canadian researchers went further - not just suppressing the immune system, but destroying it altogether. It is then rebuilt with stem cells harvested from the patient's own blood which are at such an early stage, they have not developed the flaws that trigger MS. The authors said that among the survivors, over a period of up to 13 years, there were no relapses and no new detectable disease activity.

All the patients who took part in the trial had a "poor prognosis" and had previously undergone standard immunosuppressive therapy which had not controlled the MS - which affects around two million people worldwide. One person died as a result of the strong effects of the chemotherapy, the authors said.

Lead author Dr Mark Freedman admitted there were limitations to the study - such as the small sample size - and there was no control group used for comparison with those who were treated. He said: "Larger clinical trials will be important to confirm these results."
(snip)

[global1]

1. Significant!!!! If Replicable - It Would Be Breakthru....nt

[mopinko]

2. this was shown to work at northwestern hospital in chicago

a year or 2 ago now.

ms is one of the cruelest disease i know. if it were me, i would jump in that trial.

[LiberalLoner]

5. You got that right.

The risks of the chemo seem awfully high, though.

[mopinko]

6. my sister has advanced ms

been in a nursing home for over 10 years. not mobile, barely verbal, yeah, i think she would grab it.
i think the damage is already too severe, tho. she has lost a great deal of brain matter.
i wonder how much they can reverse, tho. the body + technology=could be amazing.

[classykaren]

3. This would help many other diseases too.

[Bettie]

4. It seems as if it is a promising avenue

of research for this and other diseases.

Hoping that this will eventually help many people.