UK doctors in Sheffield say patients with multiple
sclerosis (MS) are showing "remarkable"
improvements after receiving a treatment
usually used for cancer.
About 20 patients have received bone marrow
transplants using their own stem cells. Some patients who were paralysed have been able to walk again.
Prof Basil Sharrack, of Sheffield's Royal Hallamshire
Hospital, said: "To have a treatment which can
potentially reverse disability is really a major
achievement."
Around 100,000 people in the UK have MS, an
incurable neurological condition. Most patients are
diagnosed in their 20s and 30s. The disease causes the immune system to attack the lining of nerves in the brain and spinal cord.
Immune system 'rebooted'
The treatment - known as an autologous haematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) - aims to destroy the faulty immune system using
chemotherapy. It is then rebuilt with stem cells harvested from the patient's own blood. These cells are at such an early stage they've not developed the flaws that trigger MS.
Prof John Snowden, consultant haematologist at
Royal Hallamshire Hospital, said: "The immune
system is being reset or rebooted back to a time
point before it caused MS."
About 20 MS patients have been treated in Sheffield
in the past three years. Prof Snowden added: "It's
clear we have made a big impact on patients' lives,
which is gratifying."
Multiple sclerosis
In MS the protective layer surrounding nerve fibres
in the brain and spinal cord - known as myelin -
becomes damaged. The immune system mistakenly
attacks the myelin, causing scarring or sclerosis.
The damaged myelin disrupts the nerve signals -
rather like the short circuit caused by a frayed
electrical cable. If the process of inflammation and
scarring is not treated then eventually the condition
can cause permanent neurodegeneration.
The BBC's Panorama programme was given
exclusive access to several patients who have
undergone the stem cell transplant.
Steven Storey was diagnosed with MS in 2013 and,
within a year, went from being an able-bodied athlete
to needing a wheelchair and losing sensation in
much of his body.
He said: "I went from running marathons to needing
24-hour acute care. At one point I couldn't even hold
a spoon and feed myself."
Within a few days of the transplant he was able to
move his toes, and after four months he could stand
unaided.
Steven still needs a wheelchair but is astounded at
his progress: "It's been incredible. I was in a dire
place, but now I can swim and cycle and I am
determined to walk."
Holly Drewry was just 21 when she was diagnosed
with MS and her condition deteriorated after she
gave birth to her daughter Isla.
She said "Within a couple of months I got worse and
worse. I couldn't dress or wash myself; I didn't even
have the strength to carry my daughter."
Holly needed a wheelchair before her transplant, but
after the treatment she walked out of hospital.
She said: "It's been a miracle. I got my life and my
independence back and the future is bright again in
terms of being a mum and doing everything with
Isla."
Two years on she has suffered no relapses and there
is no evidence of active disease on her scans.
Doctors describe her MS as dormant, but there is
hope that the transplant might be a permanent fix.
Cost-effective
The Royal Hallamshire Hospital - together with
hospitals in the United States, Sweden and Brazil - is
part of an international trial, MIST, which is assessing
the long-term benefits of the stem cell transplant.
All those on the trial have relapsing remitting MS,
where patients experience attacks - or relapses -
followed by periods of remission.
The treatment involves intensive chemotherapy, so
patients are warned that there are side-effects such
as nausea and hair loss.
Paul Kirkham, another MS patient, said he was glad
to have had the transplant but added: "It does knock
you. I'd rather have done 10 rounds with Mike
Tyson."
The transplant involves a one-off cost of around
£30,000, which is comparable to the yearly cost of
some MS treatments.
Because the procedure involves no new drugs and
instead re-purposes an existing therapy using the
patient's own cells, there is little profit incentive for
drug companies to get involved.
Prof Richard Burt, Northwestern University, Chicago
carried out the first HSCT for MS as long ago as 1995
and is coordinating the international trial which
began in 2006.
He said: "There has been resistance to this in the
pharma and academic world. This is not a technology
you can patent and we have achieved this without
industry backing."
A study published last year involving MS patients in
Chicago showed significant reductions in
neurological disability, and for some the
improvements persisted for at least four years,
although there was no comparative control group.
The outcome of the more detailed MIST trial - which
will report in a couple of years - could determine
whether the stem cell transplant becomes a standard
NHS treatment for many MS patients.
Dr Emma Gray, head of clinical trials at UK's MS
Society , said: "Ongoing research suggests stem cell
treatments such as HSCT could offer hope, and it's
clear that in the cases highlighted by Panorama
they've had a life-changing impact.
"However, trials have found that while HSCT may be
able to stabilise or improve disability in some people
with MS it may not be effective for all types of the
condition."
Dr Gray said people should be aware it was an
"aggressive treatment that comes with significant
risks", but called for more research into HSCT so
there could be greater understanding of its safety
and long term effectiveness.

Culled from the BBC.

Thanks for the information. I also read an article about Stem Cell Treatment for Multiple-Sclerosis in a medical tourism website named PlacidWay. Here's an excerpt from the article:

"Large strides have been made in the use of stem cell therapy, re-implantation and transfusion to help treat and alleviate symptoms caused by multiple sclerosis. Several stem cell research and treatments facilities, among them EmCell, located in Ukraine, have reported improved quality of life and relief of symptoms of patients diagnosed with the relapsing form of the disease process. Even patients diagnosed with the progressive form of the disease have been treated with a nearly 60% success rate through fetal stem cell transplantation.

Patients followed for approximately 5 years post-treatment showed a definitive regression of neurological symptoms following stem cell transplantation, with neuro muscular improvement, decreased weakness, and enhanced mental outlook in approximately 93% of patients."

You can read more here... http://www.placidway.com/subtreatment-detail/treatment,31,subtreatment,259.html/Stem-Cell-Treatment-for-Multiple-Sclerosis-Treatment-Abroad