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McFadyen urges MS co-operation with Saskatchewan

By: Larry Kusch

Posted: 10/22/2010 10:25 AM | Comments: 0 (including replies) | Last Modified: 10/22/2010 6:54 PM | Updates

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Hugh McFadyen

Manitoba’s Opposition leader says the province should co-operate with Saskatchewan to ensure that clinical trials on a controversial treatment for multiple sclerosis get off the ground as soon as possible.

Hugh McFadyen said Friday that the two provinces have the highest rates of MS in Canada and, therefore, have the most at stake from such trials.

Health Minister Theresa Oswald is advocating a pan-Canadian approach in studying the so-called ‘liberation’ treatment for MS, which involves unblocking veins to increase blood flow from the brain. (The procedure is available abroad, but not in Canada.)

But McFadyen called that a "delay tactic," terming the NDP government’s response as "slow and inadequate."

He said by waiting for a pan-Canadian plan Manitoba was essentially putting the fate of MS patients in the hands of jurisdictions that "may not have the same level of interest" in pursuing the research.

"A pan-Canadian approach is a good thing if and when it materializes," he said in an interview. "What we’re saying is that until such time that approach comes together let’s be leaders along with Saskatchewan."

There are about 3,000 multiple sclerosis sufferers in Manitoba. A number of Canadians have travelled offshore to have the liberation procedure done — with some reporting spectacular results. That has put considerable pressure on governments to test the treatment here and make it available.

Last week, Manitoba committed $500,000 towards pan-Canadian clinical trials, should researchers find it safe and ethical to carry them out. Its strategy was endorsed by the Manitoba division of the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada.

This week, Saskatchewan announced it was committing $5 million to launch province-based clinical trials. It said it will soon put out a call for research proposals and expects to announce a research team early next year.

Oswald was unavailable for comment on Friday.

Brian Postl, dean of the University of Manitoba faculty of medicine, said the proposed MS treatment presents a dilemma for politicians. On one hand the scientific community is cautiously waiting for more evidence before it proceeds with aggressive testing. But on the other hand, MS sufferers and advocates are desperate to find solutions to the complex and difficult illness. "The politicians are absolutely caught in the middle and they’re trying to find ways to keep things going without making commitments that are undoable," Postl said.

Clinical trials require large numbers of participants to be able to statistically conclude that a procedure works, he said. "It’s unlikely any one province, certainly not any of the smaller provinces, can generate enough numbers to do anything very definitive," he said of the decision by Saskatchewan to strike out on its own, if necessary.

Meanwhile, Wendy O’Malley, president of the Manitoba division of the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada, said while there have been some reported success stories involving the liberation treatment, "we know for some people that it hasn’t worked."

She said that while she applauds Saskatchewan’s initiative, there is no reason to say that Manitoba’s approach places it behind its neighbour in achieving results for patients. That’s because no one can proceed with clinical trials until researchers are assured that they are safe, she said.

larry.kusch@freepress.mb.ca

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Updated on Friday, October 22, 2010 at 6:54 PM CDT: updates

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