New Parkinson's treatment could halt and even REVERSE disease symptoms

By | February 27, 2019

A new treatment that can halt and even reverse Parkinson’s disease is giving sufferers fresh hope.

Researchers found boosting levels of a naturally occurring protein can regenerate dying brain cells – if delivered directly into the brain via tubes.

The £3million study, funded by Parkinson’s UK and pharma firm MedGenesis, had a five-year trial at Bristol’s Frenchay and Southmead hospitals.

And by the end of it, some participants had stopped having tremors and could walk from one side of a room to the other without help.

The protein Glial Cell Line Derived Neurotrophic Factor has been tested before but it was the first time it had been delivered directly to the centre of the brain.

Professor Steven Gill, who came up with the delivery method, said: “This trial has shown we can safely and repeatedly infuse drugs directly into patients’ brains over months or years through a small implanted port that emerges behind the ear.

Volunteer Tom Isaacs with his wife, Lyndsey, and their dog, Chewy – Tom has since died from an unrelated heart condition

“This is a significant breakthrough in our ability to treat neurological conditions such as Parkinson’s because most drugs that might work cannot cross from the bloodstream into the brain due to a natural protective barrier.”

GDNF was given to 41 participants. Among them was Tom Isaacs, 49, who was diagnosed aged 27 and co-founded The Cure Parkinson’s Trust in 2005.

Tom was instrumental in making the trial happen, working with Prof Gill, and had one of the most severe cases.

But after several rounds of GDNF infusions, he went from having violent tremors and barely being able to walk to running around the garden.

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Tragically, Tom died from an unrelated heart condition in 2017. Prof Gill said: “Tom was absolutely central to making this happen. Without Tom, there’s no question, we wouldn’t be here.”

Christine Proctor said taking part in the trial changed her life.

The 57-year-old, diagnosed in 2004, was initially given a placebo treatment and did not see any improvements.

After nine months, she was offered GDNF.

Ms Proctor, from Consett in County Durham, said: “Within just two days of having the infusion, I noticed an improvement in my mobility. I wake up like a lump of wood normally but I could actually sit up without assistance and move quite nimbly.”

She went from driving an automatic car to a manual and even cut down on her normal medication after treatment.

Vicki Dillon from Tyneside, with her partner Ken Robinson – Vicki also took part in the trial

“The difference GDNF made was life-changing for me,” she said. “It gave me mobility but also confidence as a result of that mobility. It took me from dependence to independence.”

Her last infusion was two years ago but she believes the progression of her Parkinson’s slowed after the trial.

Half the participants of the study, which started in 2012 and ended in 2017, were randomly assigned to get monthly infusions of GDNF and the others placebos.

All were then offered a nine-month course of GDNF. Brain scans showed signs of improvement, according to findings published in journal Brain and the Journal of Parkinson’s Disease.

Principal investigator Dr Alan Whone said: “This represents some of the most compelling evidence yet that we may have a means to reawaken and restore the dopamine brain cells that are gradually destroyed in Parkinson’s.”

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Another trial is being planned and Prof Gill believes the technology could also be used to administer chemo to brain tumour patients or test drugs for Alzheimer’s and stroke patients.

He said: “Now we’re looking at moving on with trials and increasing the dosage.

“Hopefully, this will be a definitive study to bring this therapy to people. We’re feeling very positive about this.”

My Tom knew there was a cure

Volunteer Tom Isaacs and his wife Lyndsey on the day of his first infusion of the new drug

A few years ago, Tom Isaacs could barely walk and he would have violent shaking episodes every day.

But halfway through the trial, Tom was no longer shaking, he could walk and, remarkably, he managed to run for the first time in 17 years without any medication.

His widow, Lyndsey, 55, from Herts, said: “Tom knew there would be a cure.

“When Tom started having more GDNF in 2015, he was definitely much better. And what was amazing was even when he stopped having it, his Parkinson’s didn’t really progress. It stayed at the same level.

“He was able to move in the mornings without taking any drugs, he used to have really bad episodes of shaking on the floor. He never had such severe tremors after the trial.

“He used to be in agony and unable to speak, so to me it felt like it was definitely doing something.

“For Tom to run around the garden was a massive thing. He got up in the morning before taking any medication and could run. That’s the first time he ran in 17 years without any medication.”

Tom set up the Cure Parkinson’s Trust to fund more research into GDNF.

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Lyndsey said: “It is an amazing legacy. Tom didn’t accept Parkinson’s would stop him from doing anything. I wish he was here today to see what he has achieved.”

To find out more about Tom’s legacy, visit the Cure Parkinson’s Trust site here.

It works – we need it

Vicki Dillon with Parkinson's Disease

Vicki Dillon was diagnosed aged 35

Vicki Dillon was devastated when she was diagnosed aged 35.

The former nurse, now 47, said: “My world just stopped turning, I was horrified.”

But after hearing Tom Isaacs on the radio talking about GDNF, Vicki became inspired.

“I got a tip off about the trial and I just had to be involved. I was accepted onto the trial and felt like I’d won the golden ticket, I was so excited.”

It didn’t take long for Vicki to feel the effects of GDNF. She says: “I remember ringing my partner after the second infusion. Getting up the next morning I felt normal, I had this energy.

“My health was so bad during the trial, mentally, physically and emotionally. I’d lost my mum, I was chronically anaemic, I had foot surgery, a cancer scare and I broke my leg. It was horrendous. But despite all those horrible things, my Parkinson’s got better.

“I’ve drastically reduced a lot of my medication since the trial. My tremors haven’t come back and I am 14 years down the line with Parkinson’s, so that is incredible really.

“The trial changed my life and a lot of other people’s lives. It does work. There’s no doubt in my mind. To deny it to hundreds and thousands of people all over the world would be sinful. We need it. And we need it soon.”

Research is key

Tom Phipps also took part in the groundbreaking new treatment

Tom Phipps, 63, of Bristol, was the first person to undergo the surgery.

He said: “During the trial, I noticed an improvement in my mobility and energy levels, and I was even able to reduce my medication.

“Clinical trials are so important because it’s not going to go away.”

  • BBC2 documentary The Parkinson’s Drug Trial: A Miracle Cure? screens at 9pm tomorrow.

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