close to a cure?

[SallyDC]

just a question.. how many of you, honestly, think that one day, hopefully in the not so distant future, there will be a cure for this disease? With all the research with stem cells, do you think that one day it will become the next, say, strep throat where one just takes some pills and is done with it? or am i just hoping for too much? I read an article about some stem cell research in england and a doctor said that within 10-15 years he sees MS patients just going to the doctors to take some pills and thats all. I know it's probably immature to believe that but is it bad if i have the hope that maybe he could be right?? i'm 22, and i'm hoping and praying that sometime in my lifetime there will be a cure....

[Artifishual]

Not immature at all IMHO. I like to think your a half full kinda girl if you know what I mean. Sally I like you. I hope and pray for your sake and everyone whos life has ever been touched by ms that you will not be disappointed by your Dr.

[SallyDC]

Thank you Artifishual! It seems this disease can make people become somewhat less than optimistic (through no fault of the individual obviously) but i guess you're right in that i tend to think i'm a half full kinda girl. Thank you for not pegging me as a naive newcomer! With an (almost) uncontrollable disease such as this, only thing i can never lose is faith!

[Artifishual]

Sally girl, my screen name is kinda lame. I use it on another site(fishing). You can call me Big Daddy , no really my name is Shannon, Thanks

[daverestonvirginia]

Sally, of course I believe as I think many of us do that a cure will be found, the question is how long. A cure can mean many different things to people depending on where you are with MS. If you are looking for something that stops the progress of MS we may fairly close to drugs and or natural methods that can just about do that today or fairly soon. Restoring lost abilities is mostly likely a little farther away. I do believe much progress is being made, quite a bit of it in the last ten years, so I believe the outlook is pretty good right now. Hang in there, Dave

[dignan]

Sally, as Dave said, it kind of depends on your definition of a cure, but I believe it will happen. In terms of when a cure (however many different treatments that might entail) could be available and not just in trials, I'm guessing at least within the next 20 years, maybe 15.

[Thomas]

I'm definitely optimistic, SallyDc!

I absolutely think there will be a cure for MS in the not-so-distant future, but I think the cure will not be a pill, a shot or any other pharmacological therapy. In fact I think the attitude that this disease can be cured using pharmacological therapies is fundamentally flawed and I think the cure will more likely be about lifestyle, culture, politics and philosophy. We need to re-examine questions like what is disease, what is health, what are human beings, and the whole mind-body-society relationship.

It will take some time for this to happen of course but the good news is that many of these things we can do ourselves.

[schnittke]

"We need to re-examine questions likle what is disease, what is health, what are human beings, and the whole mind-body-society relationship."


You just blew my mind!

[RedPenguins]

Hi Sally,

I'm 32 - and I keep getting told that a cure will come within my lifetime. I now find myself asking a different question:

If/when this cure comes about....will it benefit me - depending on what stage/where I am at with this disease. In other words, it might be possible that I will have too much damage by then or what not - or I might progress fast, etc. I'm newly diagnosed (will be four months on May 4) - I wasn't sick before my dx...so this is all VERY new to me - but I find myself "declining" a lot faster than I'd like to be!

I'm looking into HiCy/Revimmune...which they are saying is darn close to a cure possibly!

Either way, I will say this to you - even though I hate it when people say it to me - you are so young - I have no doubt they will have a cure in your lifetime!

[cheerleader]

Hey penguins...

People will say the stupidest things, won't they? Like "you're young, they'll find a cure" and "but you look SO good." Makes me want to scream. Drives my husband nuts. People either get it, or they don't.

Welcome to the boards. Really sorry about your recent diagnosis. It's truly a shock. It took my husband about a year to get his mind wrapped around this disease. I got proactive right away with supplements and meds. Jeff's stable, no progression or relapse since his dx. I hope you can get a handle on it. It's amazing to see what's going on at Johns Hopkins. Hope you find some answers-

We're in socal, so is Longing 4 Cheese and a few other folks. Maybe introduce yourself or send a shout out and let everyone know what we can do to help.

welcome,
AC

[RedPenguins]

Thanks, AC. Well, I posted an intro on the board....it's long - so you may regret your invitation. LOL

I am following several people who are at Johns Hopkins now....and who have had the treatment recently. My records were sent there today (Friday) and I hope to hear by the end of the week if I am a good candidate for the HiCy procedure!!

Oh, and yes, I definitely "look so good"....sometimes I wish my outsides looked as bad as my insides feel...then it would be "easier"?

~Keri

[rainer]

My feeling:

further slowing of progression 3-5 years
complete halt of immune system progression 8-10 years
beneficial repair - slows progression - restores some damage - 10-12 years
cure and big advances in repair 20-25 years

[Lyon]

.

[rainer]

Yep. Although factoring in some of the neuro's I have known... might want to add 50 years to all of that

[Lyon]

.