You may have heard in the last day or two about the revolutionary (and I use the term without exaggeration) treatment that has been trialled to treat Multiple Sclerosis (MS). In some of the most successful cases, people who had previously been completely dependent on others for such basic things as feeding were able to walk again (to a point) very soon after surgery.

MS causes the immune system to attack the lining of nerves in the brain and spinal cord. There is no known cure.

In the wake of fascinating results laid out in BBC’s Panorama and the huge difference made to some of the people treated, we’re taking a closer look at what this procedure is and how it works.

Autologous Haematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation (AHSCT) is what it’s called by the way. And here are some of the main points that you should know about it.

 1. It uses a procedure normally reserved for people affected by certain kinds of cancer. To begin with the immune system of the patient is effectively destroyed by chemotherapy. Then haematopoietic stem cells from the bone marrow or blood of the patient are reintroduced back into their body. The immune system is sort of “rebooted” to a point it was at before (MS).

 2. It cannot heal damaged nerves. Instead it can prevent the immune system from attacking the central nervous system further. For this reason not everyone with MS is suitable for the procedure. Professor Basil Sharrack from the UK MS Society explains on their website that:

 “This type of treatment can’t rebuild nerve cells so if damage has already been done it won’t help. For this reason we’ve seen success with this kind of treatment in relapsing but not progressive stages of MS.”

 3. It can be performed in almost any centre performing transplantations for MS or any other condition. As Professor Basil Sharrack says, if you are considering the option of AHSCT:

 “The best way is to consult with your neurologist. They will be able to advise and refer you to a centre if they think the treatment could be effective for you”.

 4. The effectiveness in some people is evident but still many studies and trials need to be completed. Scientists across the world are exploring ways to refine and optimise the current treatment, as well as understanding its long term effects.

Unfortunately this specific treatment isn’t suitable for people with progressive MS. But we can undoubtedly confirm that is a very big step for medicine in general and for the people affected in particular.  We hope to continue seeing how this field progresses in the future and how treatments like AHSCT, improve the quality of life of more than 100,000 people in the UK living in this condition.

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