Parkinson's Disease Tulip


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Old 02-01-2007, 05:04 PM #1
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Smile From the UK: Parkinson's pair walk again after drug switch

Parkinson's pair walk again after drug switch

by JENNY HOPE
DailyMail.com - United Kingdom
Last updated at 22:00pm on 31st January 2007

Two women suffering Parkinson's Disease have been given "their lives back" just days after starting revolutionary treatment.

Anne Ellis and Susan Hogger-Chamberlain, both 53, had become virtually wheelchair-bound after years of battling against the degenerative disorder which leaves sufferers increasingly incapable of movement.

But a new type of treatment has allowed them to start walking and moving again, freed from crippling muscle spasms.

It uses a new way of delivering the drug levodopa by continual infusion directly into the body.

The Duodopa Infusion system bypasses the stomach where the drug - which is usually taken orally by Parkinson's patients - may get absorbed before having time to alleviate the disabling symptoms.

Since the treatment began at the Norfolk and Norwich Hospital last week the women have been able to leave their wheelchairs and walk and move freely.

Anne, who was diagnosed 11 years ago, said, "The change has been amazing.

"Over the past five years my condition has worsened.

"'I get terrific cramps and searing pains but the new method of treatment has made an incredible difference."

The mother-of-three said: "I can now move around much better, it will enable me to get out of the house and I have got my quality of life back."

Susan, who lives near Lowestoft, was diagnosed with Parkinson's when she was 32 and was becoming increasingly trapped in her own home and more isolated.

She said: "It is almost too good to be true. I cannot believe how much mobility I now have. The big difference is that now we will be able to plan our lives."

Her husband Brian said: "The difference in her is amazing, not only physically but emotionally as well.

"It has been more dramatic than we expected."

Levodopa is prescribed to most Parkinson's patients but the new system administers it directly into the bowel.

It overcomes the problem of the drug being absorbed in the stomach before reaching the brain, where it replaces a missing chemical messenger which triggers the symptoms of Parkinson's.

Both women have had an operation to make a small opening in their abdomen to pass a tube into the bowel, which is connected to a portable pump worn on the waist.

It feeds the right dose of drug continuously into the women's bodies during the day, and they have the option to give themselves a "boost" if they need it.

Anne, who lives near Ludham, Norfolk, said, "Under normal circumstances you would not want a tube in your stomach but we have no choice.

"For me, instead of being rigid with pain, my limbs are now flexible."

The system costs £28,000 a year for each patient and is only suitable for people with advanced Parkinson's who have not responded to other treatments.

Consultant neurologist Dr Paul Worth, who cares for both women, had to make a special application on grounds of "exceptional need" to Norfolk Primary Care Trust.

Despite struggling with debts of £42 million, the PCT approved use of the system.

Dr Worth said, "This uses the old drug but in a new form in an extremely novel and clever package, that is why it is so expensive.

"With the potential of the drug and as it becomes more established and more people feel the benefits, the cost might come down and that will make it accessible to more people.

"We are delighted the PCT accepted it and so far it seems to be doing a marvellous job. They are doing incredibly well."

The treatment has been used on about 60 patients in Sweden but only nine Britons so far.

The two women have a temporary tube in their stomach but are due to have a permanent tube fitted, and will need treatment for the rest of their lives.

Dai Davies of Solvay, which makes the system, said it helped patients in the "very late stages" of the disease who had no alternative. He said an estimated 1,000 patients in the UK might eventually benefit.

It has been developed and managed as an "Orphan Drug" which means it has been given special status because of the small number of total patients likely to be using the system.

For the same reason, it is unlikely to be subject to an official "rationing" assessment by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), said Mr Davies.

"We are working very hard with the NHS to make sure that patients who could benefit get that opportunity," he added.

A PCT spokesman said: "Whilst the PCT continues to work hard at managing and recovering from its large debt, putting the patient first has always been, and remains, its first priority.

"Decisions regarding the most effective treatment for individual patients are taken on clinical needs."
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