Call for GPs to prescribe experimental drug for MS

Published on Friday 24 April 2009 22:20

DOCTORS should try giving patients with multiple sclerosis and other conditions an experimental treatment, a conference will hear today.

The controversial drug, naltrexone, is only licensed for the treatment of drug addiction, but some patients have seen positive results at a lower dose for conditions such as MS and chronic fatigue.

Glasgow doctor Tom Gilhooly has now organised the European Low Dose Natrexone (LDN) Conference, taking place at Glasgow University, to encourage more doctors to start prescribing LDN off-licence.

But the MS Society expressed concern as the drug has yet to be properly tested in large-scale clinical trials for the treatment of conditions such as MS. Previous research suggests that low doses of naltrexone causes the body to increase production of endorphins, which help the immune system.

By flooding the body with endorphins, it is believed that the immune system can be restored to its proper state.

But few doctors will currently prescribe LDN to patients with conditions such as MS because of the lack of medical trials. Dr Gilhooly, who runs the Essential Health Clinic which treats around 200 people with LDN, wants to raise the profile of the drug, as well as encouraging more doctors to prescribe it.

"We have used LDN to treat many different autoimmune diseases over the past five years and have seen life-changing results for patients," he said.

Dr Doug Brown, from the MS Society, said it would be interested to see what came out of the conference. But he said it was concerned that LDN had yet to be tested in large clinical trials.

"We support properly controlled clinical trials for any type of potential therapy for MS," Dr Brown said.

"Without the clinical trial data it is difficult to know if LDN is safe for people and whether it is beneficial."