Scientists have made a groundbreaking discovery about the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS) that could stop its progression.
A team of international researchers published their findings in the peer-reviewed journal Cell Stem Cell showing that stem cell injections could protect the brain from the chronic disease.
During an early-stage clinical trial, researchers injected neural stem cells into the brains of 15 patients with secondary MS from two hospitals in Italy.
All participants had high levels of disability and encouragingly showed no worsening of the illness after a year of the trial.
Over the 12 months of observation, the patients reported no serious adverse symptoms.
Minor side effects were noted, but they were temporary or reversible.
Analysis of a subgroup of patients revealed that a larger dose of injected stem cells led to a smaller reduction in brain volume over time, suggesting that the stem cell transplant reduced inflammation.
MS affects the central nervous system, causing a variety of symptoms such as numbness, tingling, mood changes, memory problems, pain, fatigue, blindness, and paralysis.
The disease becomes debilitating for two-thirds of patients within 25-30 years of diagnosis.
While several treatments help patients manage the condition, there is no cure or solution to stave off the disease. Experts are optimistic about these findings.
“These results show that special stem cells injected into the brain were safe and well-tolerated by people with secondary progressive MS,” said Caitlin Astbury, research communications manager at the MS Society, in a statement source.
“They also suggest this treatment approach might even stabilize disability progression,” she added.
According to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, over 2.8 million people live with MS worldwide, including 1 million in the US.
“We desperately need to develop new treatments for secondary progressive MS, and I am cautiously very excited about our findings, which are a step towards developing a cell therapy for treating MS,” said Stefano Pluchino from the University of Cambridge, who co-led the study, in a statement.
“We recognize that our study has limitations — it was only a small study and there may have been confounding effects from the immunosuppressant drugs, for example — but the fact that our treatment was safe and that its effects lasted over the 12 months of the trial means that we can proceed to the next stage of clinical trials.”
