By Liz Townsend

Leah Telder, 24, has suffered from multiple sclerosis (MS) since her teens. The autoimmune disease affects the central nervous system, and last October Leah could barely walk even with assistance, had blurry vision and trouble thinking clearly, and was so weak that she couldn't take care of herself, according to the Vancouver Sun.

But just five months after Leah received a transfusion of her own bone marrow stem cells as part of a study in Ottawa sponsored by the MS Scientific Research Foundation, she walked off a plane in Vancouver, British Columbia, to the great delight of her parents.

"That was amazing," Leah's mother Jacky told the Sun. "She walked off. ... I mean, there she was, actually walking."

Leah was the 17th patient to receive the experimental MS treatment as part the study. The patients undergo chemotherapy to eradicate their damaged immune systems. Then, stem cells that had been harvested from their own bone marrow are transplanted back into their bodies.

The hope is that the stem cells, which are obtained without harming the human donor, will establish a new, healthy immune system that can fight the disease, according to the Sun.

The study team is led by Ontario neurologist Dr. Mark Freedman and bone marrow transplant specialist Dr. Harold Atkins.

The study will treat 24 patients in all. Out of the 17 patients that have been treated so far, one patient died from the massive doses of chemotherapy that are required for treatment while three others reported that their MS has continued to progress. The other 13, including Leah Telder, have experienced great improvement, the Sun reported.

"I haven't felt this good since before I was diagnosed," Leah told the Sun. She was visiting her family in British Columbia for a brief time, since the study protocols require that she stay in Ottawa for observation for a year.

Leah can now walk unassisted, is able to speak and think clearly, and can take care of her own basic needs once more. Although some of her vision was lost as a result of nerve damage, she has regained much of her sight, according to the Sun.

In addition to her physical improvements, her parents have seen a positive change in her demeanor since the treatment. "Leah always had a bit of an attitude and it was gone for a while, and that was sad," Mrs. Telder told the Sun. "Now she is herself again."

The researchers plan to formally publish results of the study this summer, the Sun reported.

Leah's remarkable progress has raised hopes that this adult stem cell treatment will be beneficial to many MS patients. As one of the study doctors told Leah, according to the Sun, "I just wanted to tell you that, yes, you do still have MS, but no one would be able to tell."

Any ideas or suggestions, please send them to daveandrusko@hotmail.com.