Three years after a small number of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) were treated with high-dose immunosuppressive therapy (HDIT) and then transplanted with their own hematopoietic stem cells, most of the patients sustained remission of active relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) and had improvements in neurological function, according to a study published online by JAMA Neurology. MS is a degenerative disease and most patients with RRMS who received disease-modifying therapies experience breakthrough disease. Autologous (using a patient's own cells) hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT) has been studied in MS with the goal of removing disease-causing immune cells and resetting the immune system, according to the study background. The Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation for Relapsing-Remitting Multiple Sclerosis (HALT-MS) study examines the effectiveness of early intervention with HDIT/HCT for patients with RRMS and breakthrough disease. The article by Richard A. Nash, M.D., of the Colorado Blood Cancer Institute at Presbyterian/St. Luke's Medical Center, Denver, and coauthors reports on the safety, efficacy and sustainability of MS disease stabilization though three years after the procedures. Patients were evaluated through five years. Study results indicate that of the 24 patients who received HDIT/HCT, the overall rate of event-free survival was 78.4 percent at three years, which was defined as … Continue reading →

Washington, DC - infoZine - Three-year outcomes from an ongoing clinical trial suggest that high-dose immunosuppressive therapy followed by transplantation of a person's own blood-forming stem cells may induce sustained remission in some people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). RRMS is the most common form of MS, a progressive autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks the brain and spinal cord. Three years after the treatment, called high-dose immunosuppressive therapy and autologous hematopoietic cell transplant or HDIT/HCT, nearly 80 percent of trial participants had survived without experiencing an increase in disability, a relapse of MS symptoms or new brain lesions. Investigators observed few serious early complications or unexpected side effects, although many participants experienced expected side effects of high-dose immunosuppression, including infections and gastrointestinal problems. Scientists estimate that MS affects more than 2.3 million people worldwide. Symptoms can vary widely and may include disturbances in speech, vision and movement. Most people with MS are diagnosed with RRMS, which is characterized by periods of relapse or flare up of symptoms followed by periods of recovery or remission. Over years, the disease can worsen and shift to a more progressive form. In the study, researchers tested the effectiveness of HDIT/HCT in … Continue reading →

Nurse Pauline Cafferkey, who is battling Ebola at a London hospital, could be offered plasma from patients who have survived the virus. The treatment contains antibodies that should help fight the infection. British nurse William Pooley has donated plasma, Chief Medical Officer Dame Sally Davies confirmed. Other available treatments include antiviral drugs, but there are no stocks left of ZMapp - the drug used to treat Mr Pooley. He recovered from Ebola in September after being treated at the Royal Free Hospital, in Hampstead, north London, where Ms Cafferkey is currently being cared for. Having fought off the infection, his blood should help others do the same. Dame Sally said it would be up to Ms Cafferkey and her doctor to decide which treatments to use, adding: "The cornerstone of treatment remains fluid and electrolyte treatment." Ms Cafferkey was diagnosed with Ebola after returning to Glasgow from Sierra Leone, where she had travelled with a group of healthcare workers from Save the Children. She was said to be doing "as well as can be expected under the circumstances" by Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon. Another healthcare worker who was recently in West Africa and fell ill in the Scottish Highlands … Continue reading →

An undated Cafferkey family handout photo of Scottish nurse Pauline Cafferkey, from Blantyre, who has been named as the healthcare worker being treated in Londons Royal Free Hospital for Ebola. Photograph: EPA Josh Halliday, Rowena Mason, Severin Carrell Health officials are facing serious questions over the UKs Ebola screening process after it emerged that a Scottish nurse who contracted the virus was cleared to leave Heathrow despite raising concerns about her health. Public Health England revealed that Pauline Cafferkey (39) told medics she was worried she had Ebola before being given the all-clear to catch a British Airways flight to Glasgow. Ms Cafferkey, a community nurse in Blantyre in south Lanarkshire, is the first Ebola patient to be diagnosed on British soil. She was receiving specialist treatment in an isolation unit at Londons Royal Free hospital on Tuesday . Sally Davies, the chief medical officer, admitted there were questions over whether officials should have been more precautionary about Ms Cafferkeys concerns, but stressed that the risk to the public was extremely low. Ms Cafferkey returned on Sunday night on a flight from Freetown to Heathrow via Casablanca. While at Heathrow, Ms Cafferkey was screened alongside other health workers but asked … Continue reading →