Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Support Group
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Sorry if this is a repeat topic, but I just saw this article. Here is the link to the full article and a portion of the text. Anyone hear about this? It sounded promising when I first read it.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080923/ap_on_he_me/med_healthbeat_scleroderma_3
Resetting immune system in bid to beat scleroderma
By LAURAN NEERGAARD, AP Medical WriterMon Sep 22, 9:08 PM ET
First Bari Martz's fingers turned blue. Then she started gasping for breath, and her joints stiffened so that she couldn't even open her hands. Doctors diagnosed scleroderma, part of an insidious family of diseases where the immune system attacks a patient's own body, sometimes enough to kill.
Worsening rapidly, the Florida woman took a gamble: Doctors stored stem cells from her blood and then wiped out her faulty immune system. Her reinfused stem cells seem to have let a healthy new immune system take root, stopping more damage and, nearly two years later, letting her lungs and joints heal enough for better function.
Studies here and in Europe are aiming to reset immunity for patients with severe scleroderma work that, if successful, could cast new light on numerous autoimmune diseases, from lupus to multiple sclerosis.
While early reports are promising, it remains experimental, recruitment is slow and a fundamental issue is unsettled: Do doctors need to take the radical step of killing all the bad immune cells, or just suppress their function?
"The notion that more immunosuppression is better is somewhat logical," says Dr. Ellen Goldmuntz of the National Institutes of Health, which is funding some of the research. "The question's how best to do it."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080923/ap_on_he_me/med_healthbeat_scleroderma_3
Resetting immune system in bid to beat scleroderma
By LAURAN NEERGAARD, AP Medical WriterMon Sep 22, 9:08 PM ET
First Bari Martz's fingers turned blue. Then she started gasping for breath, and her joints stiffened so that she couldn't even open her hands. Doctors diagnosed scleroderma, part of an insidious family of diseases where the immune system attacks a patient's own body, sometimes enough to kill.
Worsening rapidly, the Florida woman took a gamble: Doctors stored stem cells from her blood and then wiped out her faulty immune system. Her reinfused stem cells seem to have let a healthy new immune system take root, stopping more damage and, nearly two years later, letting her lungs and joints heal enough for better function.
Studies here and in Europe are aiming to reset immunity for patients with severe scleroderma work that, if successful, could cast new light on numerous autoimmune diseases, from lupus to multiple sclerosis.
While early reports are promising, it remains experimental, recruitment is slow and a fundamental issue is unsettled: Do doctors need to take the radical step of killing all the bad immune cells, or just suppress their function?
"The notion that more immunosuppression is better is somewhat logical," says Dr. Ellen Goldmuntz of the National Institutes of Health, which is funding some of the research. "The question's how best to do it."
Spoke to Univ of Chicago about this a few years back. they said that globally there was a 13% death rate (at that time) associated with the procedure. They said that they used a lower dose of radiation for a shorter period of time so their mortality rate was lower. However, they would not disclose that number.
Thought I would share this info.
Best wishes to you