DENVER, Colo. (Ivanhoe Newswire) – Fifty million Americans are living with an autoimmune disorder, making it one of the leading causes of chronic illness in the country. In fact, there are more than 80 autoimmune disease. For most, there is no cure. Management is key. But that may soon change as a procedure in clinical trials right now may be the key to keeping their disease in remission.
Award-winning singer Celine Dion was diagnosed with stiff person’s syndrome, an autoimmune disease that causes uncontrollable spasms. Stiff person’s syndrome joins a long list of incurable, debilitating autoimmune diseases — including multiple sclerosis.
Kathy Miska has been living with MS for more than 20 years, the disease has progressed and left her in a wheelchair.
“It’s hard. It feels like you’re giving up a little bit of your independence,” Miska expresses.
As with many autoimmune diseases, they get worse over time. And over time medications and therapies sometimes stop working. Autologous stem cell transplants may be a last resort.
Colorado Blood Cancer Institute doctor, Richard Nash explains, “What we try and do is suppress the immune response.”
First, patients receive high-dose chemotherapy to wipe out the immune system. Then, blood stem cells are taken from the patient – or a donor – processed, and then put back into the patient.
“There’s been a number of studies showing that transplants for MS can be effective,” Dr. Nash adds.
Seventy percent of MS patients can stay in remission for five years. It’s also been shown up to 70 percent of patients with systemic sclerosis remain in remission 10 years after transplantation.
Dr. Nash reassures, “We’re having such a profound effect on the immune system.”
Stem cell transplantation is still considered an experimental treatment for autoimmune disorders. Early results have been promising but more clinical trials need to be done.
Contributors to this news report include: Marsha Lewis, Producer; Roque Correa, Videographer & Editor.
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Source:
https://www.niehs.nih.gov/health/topics/conditions/autoimmune/index.cfm
MEDICAL BREAKTHROUGHS
RESEARCH SUMMARY
TOPIC: STEM CELLS TO THE RESCUE: EASING THE PAIN OF AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE
REPORT: MB #5198
BACKGROUND: Immune system disorders cause abnormally low or over activity of the immune system. When the immune system is over active, the body attacks and damages its own tissues. People with immune deficiency diseases are vulnerable to infections since their body have a decreased ability to fight invaders. The immune system may begin producing antibodies in response to an unknown trigger that instead of fighting infections attack the body’s own tissues. Treatment for autoimmune diseases generally focuses on decreasing immune system activity. Collectively, autoimmune diseases affect more than 24 million people in the United States and an additional eight million people have auto-antibodies, which are blood molecules that indicate a person’s chance of developing autoimmune disease.
(Sources: https://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/autoimmune-diseases
https://www.niehs.nih.gov/health/topics/conditions/autoimmune/index.cfm)
DIAGNOSING: Some signs and symptoms of autoimmune disease include muscle aches and pain, inflammation, bloating, abdominal pain, rashes, dry eyes, dizziness, numbness, rapid or irregular heartbeat, and/or temperature sensitivity. Diagnosing an autoimmune disease typically takes healthcare providers longer than it does to diagnose other diseases since many autoimmune diseases have similar symptoms with each other and with other diseases. In addition to interviewing you about your symptoms, your healthcare provider may do some blood tests to check for autoimmune diseases, including: an antinuclear antibody test (or ANA), a complete blood count (or CBC), and/or an erythrocyte sedimentation rate (or ESR).
(Source: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/21624-autoimmune-diseases)
NEW TECHNOLOGY: With stem cell therapy, the progression of autoimmune diseases can be slowed down and even stopped completely. The success rate of the treatment is correlated to the patient’s age, the duration of the disease and the patient’s condition. Stem cells have the ability to turn into the cells of damaged organs they touch, and that being the case, they are used in the treatment of autoimmune diseases. If the disease has severely progressed, stem cell therapy may need to be repeated more than once.
(Source: https://www.gencell.com.ua/en/treatment-of-autoimmune-diseases-with-stem-cells)
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS REPORT, PLEASE CONTACT:
Stephanie Sullivan Tana Sykes
Stephanie.sullivan@HealthONEcares.com tana.sykes@HealthONEcares.com
If this story or any other Ivanhoe story has impacted your life or prompted you or someone you know to seek or change treatments, please let us know by contacting Marjorie Bekaert Thomas at mthomas@ivanhoe.com
