'Miraculous' results from new MS treatment

Wheelchair-bound multiple sclerosis patients able to walk again after stem-cell therapy

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Holly Drewry, 25, of Sheffield, was wheelchair bound after the birth of her daughter Isla, now two Photo: BBC

By Telegraph reporter

7:50AM GMT 18 Jan 2016

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A pioneering new stem cell treatment is reversing and then halting the potentially crippling effects of multiple sclerosis.

Patients embarking on a ground-breaking trial of the new treatment have found they can walk again and that the disease even appears to be stopped in its tracks.

“I started seeing changes within days of the stem cells being put in. It was a miracle”

Patient Holly Drewry

Holly Drewry, 25, from Sheffield, who was wheelchair bound after the birth of her daughter Isla, now two.

But Miss Drewry claims the new treatment has transformed her life.

She told the BBC’s Panorama programme: “I couldn’t walk steadily. I couldn’t trust myself holding her (Isla) in case I fell. Being a new mum I wanted to do it all properly but my MS was stopping me from doing it.

“It is scary because you think, when is it going to end?” 

The treatment is being carried out at Royal Hallamshire Hospital in Sheffield and Kings College Hospital, London and involves use a high dose of chemotherapy to knock out the immune system before rebuilding it with stem cells taken from the patient’s own blood.

Miss Drewry had the treatment in Sheffield. She said: “I started seeing changes within days of the stem cells being put in.

“I walked out of the hospital. I walked into my house and hugged Isla. I cried and cried. It was a bit overwhelming. It was a miracle.”

Her treatment has now been reviewed and her condition found to have been dramatically halted. She will need to be monitored for years but the hope is that her transplant will be a permanent fix.

She is now planning to get married.

For other patients, the results have been equally dramatic. Steven Storey was a marathon runner and triathlete before he was struck down with the disease and left completely paralysed: “I couldn’t flicker a muscle,” he said.

But within nine days of the treatment he could move his toe and after 10 months managed a mile-long swim in the Lake District. He has also managed to ride a bike and walk again.

“It was great. I felt I was back,” he said.

• Alastair Hignell: How I'm tackling MS

Mr Storey celebrated his first transplant birthday with his daughters. His treatment has been reviewed and, like Miss Drewry, there was no evidence of active disease.

The treatment – which effectively ‘reboots’ the immune systems - is the first to reverse the symptoms of MS, which has no cure, and affects around 100,000 people in Britain.

Stem cells are so effective because they can become any cell in the body based on their environment.

"Since we started treating patients three years ago, some of the results we have seen have been miraculous"

Professor Basil Sharrack

Although it is unclear what causes MS, some doctors believe that it is the immune system itself which attacks the brain and spinal cord, leading to inflammation and pain, disability and in severe cases, death.

Professor Basil Sharrack, a consultant neurologist at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: "Since we started treating patients three years ago, some of the results we have seen have been miraculous.

"This is not a word I would use lightly, but we have seen profound neurological improvements."

During the treatment, the patient's stem cells are harvested and stored. Then doctors use aggressive drugs which are usually given to cancer patients to completely destroy the immune system.

The harvested stem cells are then infused back into the body where they start to grow new red and white blood cells within just two weeks.

Within a month the immune system is back up and running fully and that is when patients begin to notice that they are recovering.

However specialists warn that patients need to be fit to benefit from the new treatment.

The research has been published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

• Panorama - Can you stop my multiple sclerosis? is on BBC1 at 8.30pm on Monday, January 18.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/health/news/12104774/Miraculous-results-from-new-MS-treatment.html

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New 'sat nav' operating technique could double chance of survival from brain cancer

Surgeons have already used the suite to carry out operations on two children and they hope to soon offer adults the benefit

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The new scanner at Sheffield Children's Hospital 

By sarah Knapton, Science Editor

12:01AM GMT 23 Jan 2016

A new 'sat nav' operating technique for surgeons could double the chance of survival of brain cancer patients by removing tumours which were thought to be inoperable.

Sheffield Children’s Hospital has launched new surgical suite which includes an MRI scanner which can precisely monitor the brain during an operation.

It allows surgeons to work out whether they have managed to remove all of a brain tumour while still in theatre.

"The MRI images mean that we can be sure the tumour has been completely removed and nothing has been left behind before we finish the operation."

Dr Hesham Zaki, Sheffield Children's Hospital

They can also work out precisely where a tumour is, thereby ensuring surrounding healthy tissue is not damaged.

Around 10,000 people are diagnosed with brain cancer each year and half will die. If a tumour is completely removed the chance of survival is up to 80 per cent. But if cancerous cells are left behind that falls to just 40 per cent.

Surgeons have already used the suite to carry out operations on two children and they hope to soon offer adults the benefit.

Doctors can check that all of the tumour has been removed

Hesham Zaki, head of the department of paediatric neurosurgery, said the equipment puts the Sheffield hospital at the forefront of increasing survival rates from brain tumours in the UK and worldwide.

He said: "The fact we can use the MRI scanner during the surgery is a real step-change. "Just like a sat nav, it tells me where I need to go.

"We scan the patient that we are operating on with their skull still open and the operation still ongoing.

"The MRI images mean that we can be sure the tumour has been completely removed and nothing has been left behind before we finish the operation.

"This is important because some types of brain tumour can look like normal brain. This is a sea-change. Tumours that were inoperable can now be operated on."

Mr Zaki said children's survival from brain tumours "is almost entirely dependent on whether the surgeon is able to remove all of the tumour".

He said complete removal means there is a 70 per cent to 80 per cent chance of long-term survival.

"But if we leave some behind, this can drop to as low as 40 per cent," he added.

Mr Zaki and colleagues use the MRI scanner in conjunction with "brain lab" technology, which enables them to pinpoint the exact location of a tumour in real time during surgery.

Surgeons use a medical probe or laser coming from the end of a microscope to "touch" tissue and tumour in the brain. The location of different tissue is then shown up on a screen which has been loaded with MRI images from the patient.

This enables surgeons to precisely work out where a tumour is, enabling it to be removed without harming healthy tissue.

Another MRI is then carried out during the operation to ensure all the tumour has gone before the surgery ends.

The hospital also has a new MRI suite for follow-up scans, which has removed the need for some children to go under general anaesthetic.

Jack McGuigan, an eight-year-old from Sheffield, has been attending Sheffield Children's Hospital since he was 10 months old.

He has a condition called Langerhans' cell histiocytosis (LCH), which is a cancer-like condition that causes growths of bone in his body.

Thanks to the scanner, he no longer needs general anaesthetic.

"It didn't feel scary at all,” he said.

Ebony Taylor, 16, from Doncaster, has epilepsy and has also used the new scanner.

She said: "The old MRI scanner made such a horrible noise, I can't describe it.

"I was nervous coming to use this one but it was so good. It wasn't as claustrophobic and it was just more relaxing with all the lighting."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/journalists/sarah-knapton/12115748/New-sat-nav-operating-technique-could-double-chance-of-survival-from-brain-cancer.html

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Warnings over milk in coconut water

Food watchdog orders recall of coconut juice in health risk over contamination with cow's milk

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Coconut water has seen a huge rise in sales in recent years Photo: Alamy

By Robert Mendick, Chief Reporter

7:22PM GMT 22 Jan 2016

Coconut juice, costing as much as an eye-watering £5 a litre, may have become the must-have drink for the health-conscious.

But investigations by the official food watchdog have sparked fears that coconut juice is being tainted with cheaper milk.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) issued two warnings over coconut juice drinks over the course of 48 hours​ in December​. The watchdog is now considering randomly testing coconut juice sold in the UK for traces of cow’s milk.

“The FSA is investigating the ongoing cases of coconut drinks with the undeclared presence of milk. From the evidence gathered so far, the issues mainly relate to drinks that contained milk ingredients which were not appropriately labelled."

Food Standards Agency

There are concerns that some manufacturers, mainly thought to be in the Far East, are adding milk to whiten the product and make it more appealing. It may also be cheaper to do so although the FSA said there was no evidence to suggest the milk was being added ‘fraudulently’.

But the presence of cow’s milk has also sparked concerns of a possible health risk for people with dairy allergies who are unaware of the presence of milk in the products.

An FSA spokeswoman said: “The FSA is investigating the ongoing cases of coconut drinks with the undeclared presence of milk.

“From the evidence gathered so far, the issues mainly relate to drinks that contained milk ingredients which were not appropriately labelled.

“Currently, there is no evidence to suggest adulteration in relation to implicated products. At this stage we do not believe it is necessary to instigate an investigation into all coconut drinks in the UK market. However, further investigations may involve random testing of the products if necessary.”

The FSA issued recalls for two coconut juice products in December. V Fresh Coconut Milk Drink, which is imported from Thailand and sold in 240ml cans, was withdrawn with a warning from the FSA that “this product contains milk, making it a possible health risk for anyone who is allergic or has an intolerance to milk or milk constituents”

It also announced the recall of Orthodox Coconut Palm brand’s coconut juice, which is produced in China, and sold in 245ml cans.

The move by the FSA follows testing of coconut juice drinks in Australia in August and September. Australia's department of agriculture ordered all coconut juice which did not declare milk on its list of ingredients be sent to laboratories for testing. The concern in Australia was prompted by the collapse of a nine-year-old boy who suffered a serious allergic reaction after drinking three sips of Coco Joy coconut milk, manufactured in Malaysia and Saudi Arabi, wand which was labelled 'dairy free'.

Australian newspapers also reported a 10-year-old boy died from an allergic reaction to a coconut drink in December 2013 called Greentime Natural Coconut Drink, which was imported from Taiwan. The drink was recalled and the company that imported it pleaded guilty to three mislabelling charges last year.

Coconut water has seen a huge rise in sales in recent years. According to the Grocer magazine, sales are now worth £50 million a year, boosted by claims of huge health benefits, and the backing of the drink with celebrity endorsements.

Coconut water is marketed as a healthier alternative to sugary juices and is claimed to be cholesterol and fat free and full of minerals and vitamins.

Vita Coco, the best selling brand, is endorsed by the likes of the pop singers Rihanna and Madonna and the film actors Matthew McConaughey and Demi Moore. There is no suggestion that Vita Coco, which is made from 100 per cent coconut water, is contaminated with dairy milk.

FOR AND AGAINST

Coconut water

Picture: Alamy

FOR

Sugar:

 

Coconut juice has less sugar than many sports drinks and much less sugar than sodas and some fruit juices.

Magnesium:

 

A serving of coconut water take care of about 14 per cent of your daily magnesium needs.

Potassium:

 

Researchers have found coconut water has five times the potassium that’s available in Powerade and Gatorade.

Antioxidants:

 

Coconut water contains a lot of antioxidants, which help prevent the damage to our bodies caused by free radicals.

---

AGAINST

Sustainability:

 

Typhoons have battered the Philippines over the last few years and the country's already vulnerable coconut trees took a hit even as demand for trendy coconut-based products is climbing.

Cost:

 

Coconut water can sell for £5 a litre. “I’d rather spend my money on natural foods and not an expensive, over-hyped fluid,” says Nancy Clark, a registered dietitian.

Contamination:

 

There are concerns that some manufacturers are adding milk to whiten the product and make it more appealing.

Water is fine:

 

The bottom line, according to experts, is that most people who even lightly exercise do not need sports drinks or coconut water - plain water is just fine.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/shopping-and-consumer-news/12116504/Warnings-over-milk-in-coconut-water.html

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