Guest guest Posted April 1, 2003 Report Share Posted April 1, 2003 - "ajana6chakra" <sixthchakra "Ruth and John" <Jtrgdean Monday, March 31, 2003 7:36 PM Message not approved: Emailing: ms_immune030331 Sat Nam, Are you asking a question or sending a link to someone? Can you clarify this? Deva This may be of interest to MS sufferers. : http://www.ms_immune030331.com (when trying this site later it came up unavailable but ...read on.) Ruth > Canadians aim for long-term remission from MS > Last Updated Mon, 31 Mar 2003 18:49:38 > OTTAWA - Canadian doctors are reporting encouraging early results from an experiment designed to replace the immune system of multiple sclerosis patients. > > Multiple sclerosis starts with a faulty immune system that attacks the protecting coating on nerves. There is no cure for the disease. > > The few drugs that are available are not working for John McCleary and his MS is advancing quickly. He is gambling on a risky experiment that might stop MS in its tracks. > > "The way medicine is progressing, something else can come down the road that might reverse the symptoms," said McCleary. > > Ottawa neurologist Dr. Mark Freedman is behind the radical new approach. "Well, we know it's a problem with the (immune) system, so we now have the tools to replace the entire system," said Freedman. > > Doctors harvested stem cells from McCleary's blood and purified the cells to remove all traces of MS. Chemotherapy wiped out his old immune system and the stem cells were transplanted back to grow a new immune system. > > Before the stem cells are transplanted back, patients are defenceless against microbes. The procedure is therefore too risky to be offered to everyone with MS. > > Angie White went through her stem cell transplant one year ago. She has no regrets. "If I hadn't had the transplant, the way I look at it, I would probably have ended up in a wheelchair." > > It's too early to call Angie's case a success story, but Freedman is encouraged by what he sees. > > "So far, there's absolutely no sign that the disease has come back in any of these patients," said Freedman. > > "So the longer it goes that they don't show anything, the better the chances are that this is representative of a long standing remission. And that's what our goal is, long standing remission." > > Freedman is presenting his results this week at the American Academy of Neurology's annual meeting in Hawaii > > a.. Canadians aim for long-term remission from MS > > a.. American Academy of Neurology Annual Meeting > (Note: CBC does not endorse and is not responsible for the content of external sites - links will open in new window) > > > WRITE TO US: > Send your comments to letters@c... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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