Inside incredible cutting edge therapy that’s curing patients of ‘untreatable’ diseases after Selma Blair breakthrough
Hollywood actor Selma Blair shared an update on her health battle with multiple sclerosis – revealing a groundbreaking treatment has put her into remission.
The Legally Blonde actress was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) in 2018 but said last month she is ‘truly in remission’ and is ‘feeling really well.’
MS is a debilitating autoimmune condition that affects the brain and spinal cord and leaves people with mobility issues, memory loss and fatigue.
There are two main types of MS, which affects about 1million Americans: relapsing remitting, in which symptoms flare and subside for periods, and primary progressive, in which there are no periods of remission and symptoms worsen steadily, leaving the person disabled.
There is no cure but some treatments have been shown to slow progression and ease symptoms, including stem cell transplants, which doctors and scientists describe as the new frontier of regenerative medicine.
About six years ago, Blair had undergone hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), a procedure that extracts and then reinfuses stems cells – undifferentiated cells with the ability to develop into various specialized cell types – into a person’s body.
With HSCT, patients specifically receive hematopoietic stem cells, which are immature cells that can develop into all types of blood cells, including white blood cells, red blood cells and platelets – which help blood clot.
They are derived from bone marrow, peripheral blood, or umbilical cord blood.
Selma Blair was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2018 but announced last month she is ‘in remission’
MS is an autoimmune condition that affects the brain and spinal cord and leaves people with mobility issues
Speaking to DailyMail.com, experts have said the results of these procedures can go as far as to ‘see patients go from a wheelchair to walking.’
So far, this groundbreaking field of medicine has made waves in the fields of cancers, autoimmune diseases and neurological disorders.
Now, doctors are using them to repair years-worth of brain damage, even restoring some paralyzed patients’ ability to walk by regrowing tissue.
Taken from the patients themselves, the cells are purified and then implanted into an area of their body where cells have died, such as brain tissue, to regrow those types of cells.
MS causes lesions in the brain, which means it causes destructive damage to the central nervous system, particularly the brain and spinal cord.
The lesions occur when the body’s own immune system turns on itself, attacking the protective covering of nerve fibers (myelin) and the nerve fibers themselves.
The resulting damage disrupts the communication between the brain and the rest of the body, leading to the various symptoms associated with MS, such as weakness in the legs, fatigue, coordination problems, cognitive changes, and pain.
But stem cells can generate new neurons and connect them to existing neurons by forming connections with their dendrites – the branches of neurons that receive signals from other neurons.
This process helps repair or rebuild damaged neural circuits, which could also be beneficial for conditions involving neurological damage or degeneration, such as certain types of brain injuries or diseases like Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s.
Stem cells are undifferentiated cells with the ability to develop into various specialized cell types
Blair said Friday she is ‘truly in remission’ and is ‘feeling really well.’
Studies have shown that around 70 percent of MS patients who receive stem cell transplants were disease-free in five years, while studies have shown up to 90 percent of traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients treated with stem cells have exhibited improvements in their injuries.
However, a stem cell transplant is not a one-time-only procedure and because the cost is so high – as much as $20,000 per treatment – many people can’t afford to do it as much as needed.
The number of treatments a person needs depends on their condition and its severity.
Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, including bone marrow transplants and peripheral blood stem cell transplants, is an FDA-approved stem cell therapy, but stem cell transplants are not covered by insurance, leaving the entire cost up to the patient to pay.
Dr Alexander Scheer, an expert in regenerative medicine who has treated patients with MS and TBIs with stem cells, told DailyMail.com: ‘It’s so beautiful to watch. I mean, to see a patient go from a wheelchair, to be able to walk is, to me, why I went into medicine.’
Stem cell transplants cured Michael Adams, 30, of nerve damage to his brain following a near-fatal car accident
Richard Benedetto (pictured with his wife Mary Beth) told DailyMail.com that thanks to stem cells, he is able to walk as he used to before his MS diagnosis
The doctor has treated Michael Adams – who suffered a skull fracture from a car accident – and Richard Benedetto – who has MS – with stem cell transplants.
Mr Adams, 30, underwent the procedure several times to transplant healthy stem cells extracted from his belly into his brain in 2019.
He told DailyMail.com the nerve damage sustained during his injury is completely repaired.
He’s more clear-headed, can participate in conversations, bolstered his friendships, and has built a career in filmmaking.
He told this website: ‘I noticed my career took a huge turn. From these low level music videos to all this other stuff. The moment I started doing stem cells. My entire life completely changed.’
As for Mr Benedetto, 56, he regained his ability to walk after undergoing a series of operations to transplant stem cells into his brain.
