Stem Cell Treatment for MS Improves Immune System and Extends Remission
- By BSTQ Staff
A new report released in December shows that stem cell transplants might soon offer multiple sclerosis (MS) patients an effective way to stave off relapses and improve their overall neurologic condition. The report was a follow up of a study conducted in 2011 of 24 patients who received high-dose immunosuppressive therapy (HDIT) followed by hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT). After three years, progression-free survival had a rate of 90.9 percent, while clinical relapse-free survival was at 86.3 percent. “In the present study, HDIT/HCT induced remission of MS disease activity up to three years in most participants,” the authors wrote. “It may therefore represent a potential therapeutic option for patients with MS in whom conventional immunotherapy fails, as well as for other severe immune-mediated diseases of the central nervous system.”
According to National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci, “These promising results support the need for future studies to further evaluate the benefits and risks of HDIT/HCT and directly compare this treatment strategy to current MS therapies. If the findings from this study are confirmed, HDIT/HCT may become a potential therapeutic option for people with this often-debilitating disease, particularly those who have not been helped by standard treatments.” The report was published in the Dec. 29, 2014, issue of JAMA Neurology.
