This Is MS Multiple Sclerosis Community: Knowledge & Support

This paper should be posted in the stem cell section, but I thought was worthy of being posted in the General section. I have spoken to two MS researchers in the last week or so - one at Cambridge and the other at the Institute of Neurology in London. The impression I got was that much work was going on behind the scenes and that prop;er stem cell treatments (i.e fully tested - not the sort you get in Holland) were within touching distance. The following papers seems to support this view.

http://www.msif.org/en/research/researc ... for_t.html

The stem cell data sounds good. Thanks for the post.

I just watched a news program about stem cells which stated therapies from these cells are 25 years in the future. Did your contacts give any comments about possible treatments in the near future?

gwa

GWA,

I think we are looking at the 5-10 year timeframe. The UK MS Society is funding a myelin repair project in this timeframe. Canada has a similar project. See the NMSS Promise 2010 initiative - huge funding for projects to protect and repair the damage. And it's not just stem cells - also growth factors to promote repair etc etc.

In the UK Professor Scolding has been leading a project on stem cells (bone marrow not from embryos). This is a response to a question in December 2005 -

"I think it will be quite soon that proper clinical trials begin looking at stem cells for repair in MS - by which I mean within the next 2-3 years, not 20-30!"

The pace of change is quite incredible. My 70 year old father was every now and again losing sight in one eye. He saw the optician last Friday who wrote to his GP and he had an appointment at the eye clinic in the hospital at 10.00 on Monday. The Consultant said he had a build up of fluid in both eyes and to come back at 2.00 in the afternoon. With a laser she made two small holes to allow the fluid to drain away. He was back home by 4.00. She told him that five years ago this would have been done by surgery and he would have been in hospital for a couple of weeks.

Whatever we think might happen in five years - I'm sure will be exceeded. This will apply to a huge range of diseases. And the pace of change will be increased from discoveries from other diseases - they are looking at stems cells for diabetes etc. I honestly believe that in 25 years time, they will be doing brain transplants (or bits of brain transplants). But by then they may well of rid the world of most of the brain diseases anyway!

Ian

Here is the link to the repair projects being funded by the NMSS.

http://www.nationalmssociety.org/Resear ... Repair.asp

These projects will be a year old in August and the article mentions trials within five years. I don't think repair was on the radar ten years ago, so it shows how quickly things can change with better techonolgy and better understanding.

PS don't sue me if I am wrong.
PSS If you are lucky you might get the brain of HarryZ and make lots of money out of MS drugs.