Multiple sclerosis was "frozen" for 5 years

Anna Stavina, XX2 century, based on the materials of The Telegraph – Henry Bodkin, Multiple sclerosis: New stem cell transplantation may 'freeze' disease progression

The "reset" of the immune system was able to stop the progression of multiple sclerosis for at least 5 years in 60-68% of patients who underwent stem cell transplantation. This is reported by the authors of a new study conducted on the basis of Imperial College London – Muraro et al., Long-term Outcomes After Autologous Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation for Multiple Sclerosis // JAMA Neurol., 2017.

Multiple sclerosis is a chronic autoimmune disease in which the myelin sheath of nerve fibers is affected. Foci of the disease – plaques of multiple sclerosis – can be found in the white matter of any part of the spinal cord and brain. Plaques occur as a result of exposure to cells of the patient's immune system, mistakenly attacking the nervous system.

The defeat of nerve fibers in multiple sclerosis leads to disruption of various organs and systems. Coordination of movements worsens, muscle pains and spasms appear. However, one of the most serious problems of patients is the gradual extinction of skeletal muscle functions. Patients with multiple sclerosis lose mobility and efficiency, and often die as a result of paralysis of the respiratory muscles.

Multiple sclerosis is a fairly common disease. About 2 million people suffer from it in the world, in Russia the number of patients with this diagnosis is about 150 thousand. There are currently no methods that would completely cure multiple sclerosis. There are, however, a number of drugs that, to one degree or another, affect the symptoms of the disease and reduce the risk of further deterioration of the patient's condition.

As an experimental method of therapy, autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation was performed in a group of patients who did not respond to standard treatment. That is, patients were transplanted with their own stem cells, which led to a "reset" of the immune system.

The treatment itself took place in several stages. At first, patients (all of them were in the late stages of the disease) were injected with a drug that stimulates the release of stem cells from the bone marrow into the bloodstream. The cells found in the blood were extracted from the body and preserved at low temperatures.

After that, all patients received a shock dose of chemotherapeutic drugs that actually destroyed the immune system. As a result of chemotherapy, among other things, those cells that mistakenly attacked the patient's nervous system died – and the development of multiple sclerosis stopped. The final stage of therapy was the "return" of preserved stem cells to patients.

The development of the disease was completely stopped in 73% of patients with recurrent multiple sclerosis and approximately 33% of patients with a progressive form of the disease (the latter is considered more severe). Five years after transplantation, there were no signs of deterioration in these patients.

Dr. Paulo Muraro, lead author of the new study, says: "We knew that such therapy helps to "reset" the immune system. It was unknown how long the effect of the treatment would last. In the course of the work – which has become the largest long–term study of multiple sclerosis - we have demonstrated that we are able to "freeze" the disease for at least five years."

The authors of the work, however, note that the treatment itself is associated with certain risks. It includes aggressive chemotherapy, which makes the body defenseless against infections. As part of the experiment, autologous stem cell transplantation was performed in 281 patients. 8 patients died within the first 100 days after the procedure.

Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru  22.02.2017