Cord Blood Stem cells for Multiple Sclerosis? Another report of successful treatment

I had an enquiry about using cord blood stem cells for multiple sclerosis (MS) this week and it appears that cases of multiple sclerosis in Malaysia are not insignificant in number. I referred the enquirer to my previous 2 blog entries ([1],[2]) for information on who performed the therapy and its reported outcome and whilst browsing found another article which also describes the procedure and its outcome.

My belief is that the clinic which conducted the treatment may be the very same one in Rotterdam mentioned previously and the price for the therapy quoted is largely similar (GBP 13,500). A lady suffering from MS, Julia Sandeman (33 years old) was previously confined to a wheelchair and apparently had no sensation in her limbs. After the stem cell infusion, she was able to balance upright in a pool and regained some sensation in her limbs. The article mentions that before her condition started, she was a dancer and had a daughter 5 years ago. Her hope is that she would be able to walk alongside her daughter on a beach. Her condition deteriorated fairly rapidly and her vision was affected, as was sensation in her limbs.

Apparently, the cord blood stem cells were injected into the acupuncture points in her body in February this year. Her father vouches for her improvement and has observed her move her foot and steadying her hand enough to send a text message. Additionally, her father is willing to liquidate some of his assets in order to fund further treatment for her in the hope that she will improve much more.

I am not sure why stem cells injected specifically into acupuncture points would help to re-myelinate nerve tissue or perhaps play a role in immuno-modulation to stop the immune attack, but these observations are interesting and in science and medicine, many of the body's functions remain nature's secret and have not been able to be explained by current analysis (even acupuncture is not well explained in western medicine despite its clearly effective use for thousands of years!).

Clearly though, its taken 5 months to see this change and it will be interesting to see whether she'll improve after another 5. The Dutch clinic seems to attract quite a number of people in the UK. I'm wondering how many MS patients they have treated already and whether the results are consistent. Given that this area has received a lot of media attention and hailed successes, I'm sure it won't be long before its revealed to us- let's pray that this isn't a fraud and is indeed an experimental therapy worth trying.