High-Dose Immunosuppression and Autologous Transplantation for Multiple Sclerosis (HALT MS) Study

Summary

The purpose of this study is to determine the effectiveness of a new treatment for multiple sclerosis (MS), a serious disease in which the immune system attacks the brain and spinal cord. MS can be progressive and severe and lead to significant disability. The study treatment involves the use of high-dose chemotherapeutic drugs to suppress the immune system. The participant's own (autologous) blood-forming (hematopoietic, CD34+) stem cells are collected before the chemotherapy is given, and then transplanted back into the body following treatment. Transplantation of autologous hematopoietic stem cells is required to prevent very prolonged periods of low blood cell counts after the high-dose chemotherapy.

Timeline

Start

2006-07

Primary completion

2015-11

Completion

2015-11

Publications

• Background Fassas A, Nash R. Stem cell transplantation for autoimmune disorders. Multiple sclerosis. Best Pract Res Clin Haematol. 2004 Jun;17(2):247-62. doi: 10.1016/j.beha.2004.04.005.
• Background Muraro PA, Douek DC. Renewing the T cell repertoire to arrest autoimmune aggression. Trends Immunol. 2006 Feb;27(2):61-7. doi: 10.1016/j.it.2005.12.003. Epub 2006 Jan 6.
• Background Muraro PA, Douek DC, Packer A, Chung K, Guenaga FJ, Cassiani-Ingoni R, Campbell C, Memon S, Nagle JW, Hakim FT, Gress RE, McFarland HF, Burt RK, Martin R. Thymic output generates a new and diverse TCR repertoire after autologous stem cell transplantation in multiple sclerosis patients. J Exp Med. 2005 Mar 7;201(5):805-16. doi: 10.1084/jem.20041679. Epub 2005 Feb 28.
• Background Saccardi R, Mancardi GL, Solari A, Bosi A, Bruzzi P, Di Bartolomeo P, Donelli A, Filippi M, Guerrasio A, Gualandi F, La Nasa G, Murialdo A, Pagliai F, Papineschi F, Scappini B, Marmont AM. Autologous HSCT for severe progressive multiple sclerosis in a multicenter trial: impact on disease activity and quality of life. Blood. 2005 Mar 15;105(6):2601-7. doi: 10.1182/blood-2004-08-3205. Epub 2004 Nov 16.
• Background Tyndall A, Saccardi R. Haematopoietic stem cell transplantation in the treatment of severe autoimmune disease: results from phase I/II studies, prospective randomized trials and future directions. Clin Exp Immunol. 2005 Jul;141(1):1-9. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2249.2005.02806.x.
• Background Mancardi G, Saccardi R. Autologous haematopoietic stem-cell transplantation in multiple sclerosis. Lancet Neurol. 2008 Jul;7(7):626-36. doi: 10.1016/S1474-4422(08)70138-8.
• Results Nash RA, Hutton GJ, Racke MK, Popat U, Devine SM, Griffith LM, Muraro PA, Openshaw H, Sayre PH, Stuve O, Arnold DL, Spychala ME, McConville KC, Harris KM, Phippard D, Georges GE, Wundes A, Kraft GH, Bowen JD. High-dose immunosuppressive therapy and autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (HALT-MS): a 3-year interim report. JAMA Neurol. 2015 Feb;72(2):159-69. doi: 10.1001/jamaneurol.2014.3780.
• Results Muraro PA, Robins H, Malhotra S, Howell M, Phippard D, Desmarais C, de Paula Alves Sousa A, Griffith LM, Lim N, Nash RA, Turka LA. T cell repertoire following autologous stem cell transplantation for multiple sclerosis. J Clin Invest. 2014 Mar;124(3):1168-72. doi: 10.1172/JCI71691. Epub 2014 Feb 17.
• Results Nash RA, Hutton GJ, Racke MK, Popat U, Devine SM, Steinmiller KC, Griffith LM, Muraro PA, Openshaw H, Sayre PH, Stuve O, Arnold DL, Wener MH, Georges GE, Wundes A, Kraft GH, Bowen JD. High-dose immunosuppressive therapy and autologous HCT for relapsing-remitting MS. Neurology. 2017 Feb 28;88(9):842-852. doi: 10.1212/WNL.0000000000003660. Epub 2017 Feb 1.
• Results Keever-Taylor CA, Heimfeld S, Steinmiller KC, Nash RA, Sullivan KM, Czarniecki CW, Granderson TC, Goldstein JS, Griffith LM. Manufacture of Autologous CD34+ Selected Grafts in the NIAID-Sponsored HALT-MS and SCOT Multicenter Clinical Trials for Autoimmune Diseases. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant. 2017 Sep;23(9):1463-1472. doi: 10.1016/j.bbmt.2017.05.018. Epub 2017 Jun 30.
• Harris KM, Lu T, Lim N, Turka LA. Challenges and Opportunities for Biomarkers of Clinical Response to AHSCT in Autoimmunity. Front Immunol. 2018 Feb 2;9:100. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2018.00100. eCollection 2018.

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