21 January 2016

So, the last drugs trial has finished. I don't think it worked for me anyway. My MS seems to be toddling along in its own sweet way. I said (more in hope than expectation) that I'd be happy to take part in anything else that came along. His reply did kind of take the wind out of my sails - I am probably too disabled now to be eligible. Bugger. 

So then I see the Panorama programme #MSpanorama. It was what I felt would be the most promising path - stem cell treatment; they harvest the patient's own stem cells, use cancer drugs to wipe out the faulty immune system then reinfect the stem cells to allow the immune system to rebuild itself, without the screwy MS bit. 

The results were amazing. The MS lesions were eliminated so that people were able to start life again.  It didn't seem that any disability was reversed but having the ability to try rehabilitation, in the hope that the body finds new ways to route messages around the damaged nerves. 

Rarely have I seen such a promising result. The cost of the treatment was about £30k - which is small when compared to the cost of existing drugs, plus the social care etc. My elder son wanted to set about finding the cash straight away!  I am truly blessed, having a close family. 

I know that the treatment has only been tried on RRMS so far, and realistically it's likely to be at least 5 years before it's tried on SPMS, so I'll need to be patient. There is a faint light at the end of the tunnel. I have to be patient to see if it is a realistic hope or an express train hurtling towards me.