Introduction
Over the last few months, the world of multiple sclerosis has been in chaos over the intense debate of how a completely new concept, that of chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency (CCSVI), is part of the MS disease process. Furthermore, the debate has also included heated discussions of whether or not treatment of the CCSVI condition should be part of multiple sclerosis treatment in the near term. This debate has polarized the multiple sclerosis community into two basic camps. One camp, composed mainly those living with MS (patients, care givers, patient-centred charities), sees CCSVI as the likely primary cause of multiple sclerosis and have advocated for CCSVI testing and treatment being available for anyone requesting it.
The other, much more conservative camp, composed mainly of those living off MS (researchers, neurologists, big charities), is much more skeptical of the role of CCSVI in MS. Notably, some prominent MS researchers with strong ties to the pharmaceutical industry have publicly labeled the CCSVI concept as valueless, ethically questionable and a hoax. This camp, which basically represents those in power, is strongly against any testing or treatment for CCSVI until clinical research has demonstrated that resolution of CCSVI provides a clear benefit. This will, at best, happen in a time frame of 5-10 years.
Some people with MS are already getting tested and treated for CCSVI in developing countries because they feel they have much more to gain than they have to lose. It is important to base decisions for action on all available data and in the last few weeks some important new data have become available on CCSVI and MS from two different and very reliable sources (University of Buffalo and Georgetown University).
######################
.
============================================
0 comments:
Post a Comment