HALIFAX CHRONICLE HERALD - Thu, Sep 9 - 12:53 PM
By JOHN McPHEE Health Reporter
Many people have reported improvements in their health after having the “liberation” treatment at clinics outside the country, McNeil said at a news conference today in Halifax.
“They want to know if it is effective and safe. No one is prepared to answer that question because they can’t. They don’t have the scientific evidence and we are not even tracking who have already had the treatment.”
McNeil called for a clinical trial involving at least 1,000 patients in multiple locations.
“This government needs to show leadership and contribute to a clinical trial that can be accessed by Nova Scotians,” he said.
“We are not asking for tax dollars to be spent on an unproven treatment. We are asking for tax dollars to be spent on a clinical trial to get answers.”
McNeil was joined at the news conference by four people who have MS, some of whom have had the angioplasty-type treatment and shown improvement, and others who are considering getting it.
About 125 people have spent between $8,000 and $20,000 to travel to the United States, Mexico, Europe and other locations for the treatment.
“Today is my birthday and for the first time since my first MS attack, I’m able to genuinely smile, stay awake for more than three or four hours at a time and look forward to the rest of my life,” said Yvonne Andersen of Truro, who had the treatment nine weeks ago in Albany, N.Y.
Andersen noted that 3,000 Nova Scotians have MS, one of the highest rates in Canada.
“Our plea is one that could come from you or a family member (of someone with MS),” she said, struggling to contain her emotions.
“Please help us get our quality of life back.”
Last week, the federal government said the evidence so far that the treatment works doesn’t warrant expensive clinical trials. Instead, Ottawa will assemble a working group to study information coming out of seven studies of the treatment regime now underway.
Premier Darrell Dexter has said the province wouldn’t move ahead on its own with clinical trials.
“It would be incumbent upon us to take the advice of the medical research community, and to follow a recommended scientific course of examination in respect to the therapy,” Dexter said last week.
The procedure was pioneered by Italian vascular surgeon Paolo Zamboni, who believes blocked neck veins are linked to MS.
The blockages lead to iron buildup on the brain, causing the condition, according to his theory. The widely accepted theory is that MS occurs when the immune system goes awry and attacks the nervous system.
Zamboni’s treatment is to open the veins with a stent, or a small balloon.
