Can Stem Cell Therapy
help MS sufferers?
now I can swim and cycle and I am
determined to walk”. His treatment has
been reviewed, and like Holly, there was
no evidence of active disease.
The Royal Hallamshire Hospital,
together with hospitals in the United
States, Sweden and Brazil, is part of an
international trial, known as MIST, which
is assessing the long term benefits of the
stem cell transplant.
Around 100,000 people in the UK have Multiple sclerosis (MS),
an incurable neurological condition. Most patients are diagnosed
in their 20s and 30s.
MS affects nerves in the brain and spinal
cord, causing a wide range of symptoms
including problems with muscle
movement, balance and vision.
Each nerve fibre in the brain and spinal
cord is surrounded by a layer of protein
called myelin, which protects the nerve
and helps electrical signals from the
brain travel to the rest of the body. In MS,
the disease causes the immune system
to attack the myelin which becomes
damaged.
The damaged myelin disrupts the nerve
signals. If the process of inflammation
and scarring is not treated then
eventually the condition can cause
permanent neurodegeneration.
UK doctors at Sheffield’s Royal
Hallamshire Hospital have been
treating MS patients with bone marrow
transplants using their own stem
cells. The 20 patients treated showed
remarkable results.
The treatment, known as an autologous
haematopoietic stem cell transplant
(HSCT), aims to destroy the faulty
immune system using chemotherapy. It
is then rebuilt with stem cells harvested
from the patient’s own blood. These
cells are at such an early stage they’ve
not developed the flaws that trigger MS.
Stem cells are so effective because they
can become any cell in the body based
on their environment.
The BBC’s Panorama programme which
aired in January was given exclusive
access to several patients who have
undergone the stem cell transplant.
Holly Drewry was just 21 when she was
diagnosed with MS and her condition
deteriorated after she gave birth to her
daughter. Holly received her treatment
at Sheffield and said “I started seeing
changes within days of the stem cells
being put in”. Holly had needed a
wheelchair before her transplant but after
the treatment she was able to walk out of
hospital. Holly describes it as a miracle.
Holly’s treatment has now been reviewed
and her condition has been found to have
been dramatically halted. She will still
need to be monitored but the hope is that
the transplant will be a permanent fix.
For other patients the results have been
equally dramatic. Steven Storey was a
marathon runner and triathlete before
he was stuck down by the disease and
left completely paralysed. He said “At
one point I couldn’t even hold a spoon
and feed myself”. Within nine days of the
treatment Steven was able to move his
toe and within 10 months he managed
a mile long swim in the Lake District.
Steven still requires a wheelchair but
is astounded at his progress “It’s been
incredible. I was in a dire place, but
All of the patients on the trial have
relapsing remitting MS where patients
experience attacks followed by periods
of remission. The treatment involves
intensive chemotherapy so patients are
warned that there are side effects such
as nausea and hair loss.
The transplant involves a one off cost of
around £30,000 which is comparable to
the yearly cost of some MS treatments.
The procedure involves no new drugs
and instead repurposes an existing
therapy using the patient’s own cells.
Consequently there is little profit incentive
for drug companies to get involved.
Professor Richard Burt of Northwestern
University, Chicago carried out the
first HSCT as long ago as 1995 and is
coordinating the international trial which
began in 2006. He said “There has been
resistance to this in the pharma and
academic world. This is not a technology
you can patent and we have achieved
this without industry backing”.
The outcome of the more detailed MIST
trial is not expected for a few years
and could determine whether the stem
cell transplant becomes a standard
NHS treatment for many MS patients.
The BBC Panorama programme made
clear that stem cell therapy is still very
experimental and is not suitable for
everyone. However, it could potentially
be a very effective therapy, holding
great promise for people living with
MS. It’s a long way from being a routine
treatment for MS and more clinical trials
are needed to understand who is most
likely to benefit from treatment and fully
understand what the long-term effects of
treatment might be.
By Annika Mason
41