Jayne Thomas greeted the news with enthusiasm, even aas she felt the familiar creep of her body fighting against itself.

"I am very pleased with this news, although I have to add a 'but' in there," the St. Catharines multiple sclerosis patient said of Ottawa's announcement Wednesday it would fund trials into a procedure called "liberation therapy," which is purported to relieve the often debilitating effects of MS. "This is great news for all of us, but by the time these trials are done, other trials will be already be finished. For someone with MS, waiting isn't an option. Each day living with MS is a day closer to being in a wheelchair, or a day closer to death."

Liberation therapy, invented by Italian doctor Paolo Zamboni, purports to treat chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency, or CCSVI. Zamboni said in November 2009 that reduced blood flow to the brain because of CCSVI may be associated with MS, an illness that attacks the brain and spinal cord. Zamboni's idea is that CCSVI could cause an iron overload in the brain and spinal cord, restricting blood flow and causing MS. Through angioplasty, a procedure that expands obstructed blood vessels, he said the condition of MS patients can be improved.

Although angioplasties are often done for patients with heart conditions, they are not approved to treat MS in Canada. It is available at a few clinics in the U.S., along with others in India and Poland.

It is regulated by the provincial and territorial health ministries, which have not given the procedure a green light because the science is still in question.

Those with MS, like Thomas, who want the procedure have no choice but to travel out of country to get it. She did just that in November, flying to a clinic in Florida to have the procedure done. She said she noticed immediate results. Her sense of touch drastically improved as did her circulation, balance and cognitive abilities.

However, she said those gains are faded and MS is slowly regaining the hold it had on her. So Thomas is fundraising to take a trip to Pittsburgh in September to have the procedure again.

Thomas said the news that the federal government is funding liberation therapy trials is good news for those living with the disease. From her point of view, it should have happened already.

"The proof is already proven," she insists. "What we are saying to the government is just do it. Please. We cannot wait any longer."

Thomas is holding a bottle drive at Moe's Tap and Eatery on Lakeshore Rd. on July 9th from noon to 5 p.m. to help cover some of the more than $5,000 it will cost for the treatment. There will also be barbecue and a 50/50 draw.

glafleche@stcatharinesstandard.ca

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3196209