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>>>>> Help ME Circle <<<<
>>>> 5 August 2011 <<<<
Editorship : j.van.roijen@chello.nl
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Thoughts About ME
ME/CFS: A Disease of Despair
Groundbreaking Paper about
Norway Rituxan Study Imminent
Posted on August 4, 2011
by Sick And Tired
I just received an email from Invest in ME explaining why
the distribution of the conference DVDs of the Invest in
ME conference in London in May of this year has been
taking longer than expected.
Apparently, two Norwegian researchers, Professor Olav
Mella and Dr. Oystein Fluge, who presented at the
conference are about to publish a *groundbreaking*
paper and the DVDs are held back until happens in order
to avoid jeopardizing the publication.
Here is a quote from the Invest in ME email:
*This year as well we have the new research from the
Haukeland University Hospital, Norway. Before the
conference the Norwegian presenters, Professor Olav
Mella and Dr qystein Fluge, discussed with us the amount
of data that they could present regarding their exciting
new research.
They wished to present as much as possible but did not
wish to compromise the publication of their imminent
paper.
IiME promised that we would not distribute the DVD
(including their presentation) until the Norwegian
researchers gave the go-ahead due to the magnitude
and implications of their research.
In return Professor Mella and Dr Fluge were very open in
their presentation and gave as much information as they
could.
We do not wish to jeopardise their research publication so
we are now awaiting news of their imminent publication
before beginning the distribution of the DVD.
Their paper is now completing the peer review process
and we would rather wait a little longer before
distribution begins in order that we can include this
presentation on the DVD as well.
This has forced a delay but we hope everyone will
understand the reason for this. *The research by
Professor Mella and Dr Fluge, experts in their own
(non-ME) field, could be ground-breaking.* (Emphasis
added)
Based on Mike Turris' summary of the Invest in ME
conference, I am guessing that this has to do with Prof.
Fluge's and Dr. Mella's Rituxan study:
*Dr. Oystein Fluge and Professor Olav Mella were next
with their hypothesis that at least a subset of CFS
patients have an activated immune system as an
autoimmune illness, and these people could benefit from
a B-cell depletion therapy using Rituximab.*
Rituxan is a chemotherapy drug that depletes B cells.
Dr. Kogelnik, who first talked to me about Rituxan in
January of this year, is currently doing his own Rituxan
study. He was at the London conference, so he knows all
about the results of the Norway study.
All of this seems to suggest that the Norway Rituxan
study was successful. Dr. Kogelnik also mentioned the
study in his April talk:
*There's been some research in Norway with Rituxan.
Rituxan is a B cell agent that wipes out B cells, which is
one of the potential reservoirs especially for EBV or
HHV-6, but also for other pathogens.
There has been some great clinical success with Rituxan
on a short-term basis, but there is no long-term data
yet.
Patients on Rituxan have had almost complete resolution
of their symptoms within 24 hours. Unfortunately, after
the drug wears off, the symptoms return. So the
question to look at is what Rituxan is doing
immunologically and how that can be sustained long
term.*
For the sake of completeness:
Dr Oystein Fluge = O with a slash / through the O
~jvr
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